Make the Path Straight

Not only are we to lift our drooping hands and strengthen our weak knees, but verse 13 tells us to “make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.”

According to the Greek language, it’s not really a difference between making a straight path or a crooked one. Instead, the wording presents the idea of forging a path that is easy for someone behind you to follow, much like my daughter and I experienced while on safari in Africa. Each vehicle traveled deep into the natural habitats of animals indigenous to the area, following the established ruts paved by previous adventurers across the wilderness. As we moved further into the savanna, the driver was careful to stay on the tracks and emphatic about us remaining in the vehicle. 

Why? Danger loomed.  

There surely were lions and tigers and bears out there. (Well, not bears, but animals threatening enough for him to carry an automatic rifle strapped to his back.)

The writer of Hebrews is communicating the same. There is no margin for going on off-road wandering. He is not saying the straight path has no thrills. I assure you. It does. Ask Paul. 

“Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.” 2 Corinthians 11:25-27 

The point is that we need you here to lead. Oh, how I pray you get this very important point. Yes, you. It is essential that you become a stronger version of yourself because there is someone who needs to follow your lead to discover more of Jesus. It is ever so important that you make the path straight. Make it understandable. Forge it so others can follow. Try to be helpful, full of Truth, recognizing that someone’s life is depending on you. 

So leave the short-cuts and fancy off-road excursions for someone else. Instead, you can choose to be a part of helping another person know Jesus better because you decided to become a stronger you.