There is a large yield sign at our exit on the tollway. We are always pleasantly surprised when drivers actually stop to allow us off the ramp and into the lane ahead of them. Yielding is not something most people are naturally inclined to do. Yet Scripture teaches us that yielding is one of the most important aspects of our spiritual strength.

God told his people if you will stop and allow me to be first, if you will come back to me and rest yourself in my Presence, I can save you from all kinds of mistakes and hardships. God told them our earthly life shouldn’t be about working harder, doing more, and striving to be more successful with earthly things. The Lord taught them that if they would just be still, to listen and wait for him to lead, then they would be spiritually strong and truly successful in the things that matter most. 

God told his people that he could bless their lives if they would just obey his teaching, and then he voiced some of the most convicting words in all of Scripture. God said, “But you were unwilling.”

Have you ever wondered why it’s difficult to yield our schedules and our plans in order to spend time focused on the Lord? Satan would rather you hurry through your life doing one hundred good things than take the quiet time necessary to hear and obey the God-things that will change your life, and likely the lives of others. 

It will probably always be a difficult choice to rest in the Lord and remain there long enough for him to strengthen our lives and direct our paths. Satan wants us to remain self-sufficient instead of God-dependent. Satan isn’t threatened by our good success in the world; he is threatened by those moments we walk in God’s plan and find spiritual success in our lives and ministries.

Are you willing to take the time to rest in the Lord and allow the world to rush past? Is there a place where you know you can spend quiet time with God, uninterrupted by anyone but the Holy Spirit? 

The question is, are you willing to yield your good ideas and your own plans in order to wait for God’s perfect guidance? Rest in God and you will be saved from making wrong choices. Rest in God and trust his direction because yielding to God’s wisdom is spiritual strength.