Steady

This word has several facets to its meaning and they all seem related to me:

“firmly fixed, supported, balanced, not shaking or moving, not faltering, or wavering; controlled, sensible, reliable, self-restrained.” After reading that entire definition, I really like that word. Hidden among all those descriptive words is great strength. It takes a strong person to be steady in the face of the high winds of trouble as well as the gusts of greatness. One of my favorite people in history is Abraham Lincoln because he led this country with a steady hand. He wasn’t without fault, but he epitomizes this word.

Jacob was giving a blessing to his 12 sons at the very end of his life. He’s lived in Egypt for quite some time and thanks to his son Joseph, the family was saved from starvation. Jacob goes through the birth order of his sons and gives them a blessing or a sobering reprimand. When he gets to Joseph, he says a bit more. Check this out….

22 ‘Joseph is a fruitful vine,

    a fruitful vine near a spring,

    whose branches climb over a wall.

23 With bitterness archers attacked him;

    they shot at him with hostility.

24 But his bow remained steady,

    his strong arms stayed supple,

because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob,

    because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel,

25 because of your father’s God, who helps you,

    because of the Almighty, who blesses you

with blessings of the skies above,

    blessings of the deep springs below,

    blessings of the breast and womb.

26 Your father’s blessings are greater

    than the blessings of the ancient mountains,

    than the bounty of the age-old hills.

Let all these rest on the head of Joseph,

    on the brow of the prince among his brothers. (Genesis 49:22-26 NIV)

What a cool moment of blessing for Joseph. He had indeed proven himself steady and strong. That really inspires me, because it’s pretty easy to become “unsteady” and therefore “unstable”. I believe that I can remain steady as long as I’m leaning into the Rock that doesn’t move. The Lord’s Presence in me is the Supreme Stabilizer. I really want to be a steady follower of Jesus. I want to be a steady husband. I want to be a steady Dad. I want to be a steady leader/teacher. I want to be a steady REALTOR. I want to remain steady and strong no matter what comes my way – whether great success or great challenges.

Pressing On!

Dwayne