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Read Proverbs Chapter 4.
\u201cCarefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established.\u201d Proverbs 4:26
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I love what \u201cconsider\u201d means in the original Hebrew: \u201cto roll out.\u201d At first when I read it, I thought how odd. \u201cCarefully roll out the path for your feet.\u201d It didn\u2019t make sense at first. But then as I pondered it, I thought of the difference between walking on a flat path versus an uphill path. Flat is much easier to walk, doesn\u2019t take as much energy and is typically more enjoyable.
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Think of those big rolling machines they use when building roads. It\u2019s always the last step in the process. They roll slowly over the newly laid pavement, flattening it out, making a smooth road for the cars that will soon be traveling on it. It does establish a clear path to follow.
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How can we create clear paths for us to follow in our lives? The first thing to do is think about what you have coming up, either in the next week, month or year. I do this practically by praying over my calendar at the beginning of each week. I look ahead at my week and I pray over it. I pray over any meetings I have scheduled, I pray for the people they are with, what we will talk about etc. I pray over my work schedule, thanking God for the work, praying I honor Him with it. I pray over my exercise schedule, any trips we have planned, anything my husband has on the calendar that he is dealing with that particular week. If it\u2019s on the calendar it gets prayed over.
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Another practical way my husband and I apply this to our lives is with our monthly budget meeting. It\u2019s always at the end of the month. We\u2019re able to look back over the month and gauge how we did. We look ahead to what we have coming up and we budget for whatever expenses it may cost. It\u2019s how we control our money instead of letting our money control us. It helps make our financial path flat, taking out any bumps we foresee, setting a little aside for any potholes we can\u2019t see.
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Each year, I look back over the year to see if I met my goals. I look ahead to what I want to accomplish in the year to come. I set new goals I want to achieve, writing them out and making a concrete plan on how I can accomplish them.
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All of these things help me roll out the path ahead of me. They help me establish my ways. I can move forward confidently because I know God has cleared the way. He\u2019s gone before me and prepared my path. It doesn\u2019t mean there won\u2019t be potholes, it just means God is already waiting to hep cushion the blow.
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