Don’t lean on your own understanding!

Pastor Robert L. Taylor
Oct 28
2 min read

Scripture teaches us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5–6). We are told, positively, to trust the Lord and, negatively, not to trust our own understanding. Those two things are mutually exclusive. In other words, if we trust in the Lord, we cannot also depend upon our own ability to understand everything God is doing. While human understanding is limited, emotional, and flawed, God's perspective is eternal and all-knowing. To trust in the Lord with all our heart means we can’t place our own right to understand above His right to direct our lives the way He sees fit. When we insist on God always making sense to our finite minds, we are setting ourselves up for spiritual trouble. Before placing our trust in Jesus, we leaned on (relied completely on) our own knowledge, judgment, and understanding. When the Bible tells us in this verse not to lean on our own understanding, it is not encouraging us to be irrational. In fact, the book of Proverbs speaks very highly of understanding: (Proverbs 2:2-3, 11, 3:13). So, if we’re supposed to get understanding, why are we not supposed to lean on it? Because our own understanding is pitifully limited, it simply will not bear the full weight of reality. In other words, it’s not sound or mentally healthy to trust our limited understanding when one can trust the unlimited understanding of God! So many of the things that cause us the most difficulty and heartache in life, the source of so much of our anxiety, fear, doubt, and anger with others and with God, is the result of leaning on our own understanding. When we acknowledge God, we’re resting our intellect upon the intellect of God. Nothing is wiser or saner! To do so is to allow God to “make straight” (direct) our paths, which not only lead to ultimate joy, but also make the journey itself, even when laden with sorrow, joyful (2 Corinthians 6:10). To not do this is the height of insanity, foolishness and the path to misery. And so, God gives us Proverbs 3:5–6 as a priceless gift. Be encouraged!