Not my way...

Jeremiah 10:23-24
O LORD, I know the way of man is not in himself;
It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.
O LORD, correct me, but with justice;
Not in Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing.

Life was not designed to be lived my way.
Even at my best moment of purity and discernment I miss God's will and best path for my life. "All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, But the LORD weighs the spirits" (Prov. 16:22).
Life is best lived in prayerful dependence on God through the guidance of the Holy Spirit in accordance with the Word of God and the example of Jesus Christ. I know this to be true by both Scripture and experience yet I still struggle to live in prayerful dependence on God.

I love the petition of Jeremiah here in verse 24, "correct me Oh LORD... but with justice."
Who prays this? Who begs for correction? Who have I ever heard ask for God's justice to be done toward himself?
What a bold and daring prayer; to ask God to correct... instead of forgive. Notice that Jeremiah considers the more difficult side of God and asks for justice rather than grace. Far too often I lean on the grace of God all the while needing justice and discipline far more desperately.

Father - give me a humble heart that I might consider Your ways rather than my own. Give me a wise heart that I might discern the paths you lay before me. Give me a bold heart that I might ask for justice as well as grace. Give me a strong heart that I might endure your just correction and glorify You in all my steps. Amen.