If someone offered you advice that was guaranteed to help you, to give you a better life, to win you favor with people, would you be willing to take their advice? That’s exactly what we find in Proverbs in the Bible. It is full of very practical and powerful advice, if you and I just know and live by its principles. I’m pointing out five lessons for living from Proverbs 3, and the third one is found in verses 5 and 6:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him and he will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).

This is one of the more familiar passages from Proverbs and it gives us such an important lesson for living our lives. Three things you need to do:

This is a lesson I must learn again and again because I am prone to trust in myself or someone else instead of trusting in the Lord. Trusting in the Lord means you simply believe his Word is true, his promises never fail, and his plans for you are the best. You trust in good times and bad; you trust when things are going well and when you can’t understand what’s happening or why. You trust with all your heart. And to have this kind of trust, you have to know God well through his Word and prayer and fellowship with other believers.

Then you must learn to be skeptical about your own wisdom—your own understanding. Often, we are influenced by the world’s way or by other people, and what looks like a good idea can be a disaster. God’s ways are frequently not our ways, and so don’t put your trust in your own abilities, your own experience.

Then submit to the Lord in every decision you make. Seek first his way. Who do you go to first when you need help or advice? Seek first the Lord and submit to his ways. When you do, your way will be clear and straight and will not take you down the wrong road.

I encourage you to put this passage in your heart and recite it often. It is one of the most important lessons for living that you will ever know.