Vows: Thank and Walk by Heidi Dru Kortman

Text: Psalm 56:12-13.

“I am under vows to you, O God; For you have delivered my soul from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”

How did I become under vows to God? In my case, it is not because I ever made a “God, get me out of this mess” plea, but because I am alive at all. I was born three months premature in 1957, a time when sustaining premature babies was difficult. 

According to His plan, I was born without heart defects, I had no lung trouble, and the regulated oxygen in the incubator did not leave me blind. If you saw me today, it would be hard for you to believe I weighed just over two pounds at birth.

Though cerebral palsy makes my body less agile than normal, I seem to have received a relatively agile mind, and I must consider carefully what to do with it. Some people make vows that promise action, but I believe God values vows about our attitudes even more. Giving thanks must be a major emphasis in my life, and in yours. I agree that maintaining an attitude of thanks is not what we are most inclined to do. On some days, it can be very hard indeed.

Once we have begun to build an attitude of thanks, action is required. Our text today clearly states that our souls are saved from death so that we can walk before God. For all of us, “walk” means the acts involved in living life, even if our mobility choice is a set of wheels. For the rest of us, who do not stride through life with the power and grace of athletes, for we who concentrate ferociously on each step, whose gait is closer to staggering or shuffling, the remainder of the verse holds great significance. Our God prevents our feet from stumbling countless times each day as we make our daily effort to do His will. If our actions make the source of our strengths obvious, we fulfill our purpose as His dearly cherished remnant, His holy people.

Heidi Dru Kortman DTM

God's gifts and call are irrevocable.

heididrukortman.com.

Heidi Dru Kortman, a CWG Apprentice graduate, ACFW member since 2004, and Word Weaver member has published devotionals in various newsletters, and a collected volume of devotionals. Her poetry, flash fiction, and short stories have appeared in small magazines, and a website. She is applying herself to the task of writing smoothly polished fiction.