DO THE NEXT THING

Do the next right thing. Do the next obedient thing.

I have been in a searching season. Decisions need to be made. Steps need to be taken...or not. I have sat staring at the ocean, praying for answers. I have stared into the night sky for hours, asking the LORD to make His ways known. I have read my Bible in the quiet of the mornings, hoping to gain understanding.

Step-by-step instructions would've been nice, but they haven't come. In fact, God has been largely silent but for this one thing that He seems to be declaring with a megaphone:

Just do the next right thing. Do the next obedient thing.

And so I'm really evaluating how I'm ALREADY doing with what God has ALREADY placed in my path. I'm coming up short, I tell you. I'm coming face to face with my failures. I need to be more faithful with the very step I'm on. And the next step. And the one after that.

I need to be a better wife. I need to be a better mom. Yes, I'm a good wife and a good mom. But they could have more of me. They could have more of my focus. They could have my attention in undivided form.

That's the next right thing. That's the next obedient thing. Being more mentally present during the kids' bedtime routines, even when I'm suffering from end-of-the-day burnout. Taking time to be still--together. Getting the clean laundry off our dining room table and into drawers. Carving out time with Justin. Streamlining the way I pack my son's lunch to make our mornings more peaceful.

None of those things seem all that spectacular. But they are the next right things. They are the next obedient things. They are the "Whatever you do, do it with all your heart as though you were working for the LORD" things. They are the next immediate, where-the-rubber-meets-the-road things I need to be doing.

And it's more than that. Doing the next obedient thing often means OBEYING the commands that we already know from Scripture.

Like praying for my enemies.
Tithing.
Choosing to forgive.
Encouraging someone.
Confessing sin.
Keeping my words pure.
Hiding God's Word in my heart.
Being honest.
Trusting God. Really trusting Him.

Yes, there are still big-picture decisions that need to be made, still steps that either need to be taken, or not.

But first come the steps I already know I'm supposed to be taking.

He has shown you what is good
and what the LORD requires of you:
To do justly
and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.
Micah 6:8

* What are YOUR next right things?