How Can We Return?

 I wonder when was the last time we lost our way as we were traveling? It is a terrible feeling to see that we missed the right way, and now we have to return to the right way to get to our destination. Some times the return is easier than at other times. However, that is what we have to do. We have to stop going the wrong direction and make corrections to return to the right way. Life is like that. We can be going along, and then we realize we have departed from the right way of living. It could come to us because we run into all kinds of trouble, or it could be we realize we are wandering aimlessly without true purpose and direction. It is then that we might ask God, "How can we return to the right way of living?" That is what the people asked of the Prophet Malachi. (Malachi 3:7) He had pointed out their disobedience to God's statutes. They had been going the wrong way for several generations. Therefore, God's message was for them to return to His statutes. He assured them that if they would return to Him, He would return to them. However, they were not sure how to return, so they asked the Lord of Armies, "How can we return?" The prophet showed them, and we need to ask God to show us today.

God makes the path of life clear in His Word, the Bible. It is filled with statutes, commands, and principles to guide us to the right destination for our life. Some of us don't know them, because we have never read the Bible. Others have been taught, but we decide not to keep them, so we wander from God's way. So how can we return? We need to begin by admitting to God that we have missed His way. We need to submit to Him, and tell Him we can't live on our own. Then, we need to begin with what we know of God's Word. We return to Him by keeping what we know from His directions. Then, we need to learn more and more, all the while keeping everything God says. Remember, His Word is always true, and it always leads us in the right way, as we understand it correctly. That is why He gave us church families with pastors and teachers to teach us the Bible and encourage us to be faithful to it. Therefore, part of returning to the Lord is returning to His church to worship Him and grow in the faith with other believers. Believe me, God has given us all the help we need to return to Him, we just have to pray and see where we need to return, and then do what His Word says in that area.

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Tomorrow, I intend to read Malachi 4 and Matthew 1-2.