Proverbs 3:5–6

“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.”

One of the things that makes Disney’s Jungle Cruise so much fun isn’t really the jungle.

It’s the skipper.

Our family has a friend who was once a Jungle Cruise skipper, so maybe we appreciate those corny jokes and witty one-liners a little more than most! The skippers keep you laughing as your boat winds its way past elephants, hippos, waterfalls, and all sorts of unexpected sights.

You never quite know what is waiting around the next bend.

But the skipper does.

And while the jokes may make you question the skipper’s sense of humor, you never really question whether they know how to get the boat through the jungle!

Life can feel a little like that sometimes.

We would love to have a map showing us exactly what is coming. We want to know what’s around the next bend before we get there. We want reassurance that we are making the right decisions, heading in the right direction, and that everything is going to turn out the way we hope.

But most of the time, we simply can’t see that far ahead.

Proverbs offers us these familiar words:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”

Trusting God doesn’t mean we stop thinking, planning, or making wise decisions. It means recognizing that our view is limited, while God’s is not.

We can only see the stretch of river directly in front of us.

God sees the whole journey.

That can be especially difficult when we reach a bend we didn’t expect—a change in plans, an unanswered question, an uncertain future, or a season when we simply don’t know what comes next.

Our instinct may be to grab the wheel and try to control the journey ourselves.

But faith invites us to loosen our grip.

To trust that God is present.

To listen for God’s direction.

And to take the next faithful step, even when we cannot see where the whole path leads.

We may not know what is around the next bend.

But we can trust the One who guides us.

Pause & Reflect

Where in your life do you wish you could see what is around the next bend?

What uncertainty are you carrying right now?

Are you trying to figure out the entire journey when God may simply be asking you to trust him with the next step?

Take a moment and imagine placing that uncertainty into God’s hands.

Then ask:

God, where are you guiding me today?

You don’t have to see the whole river.

Just trust the Guide.

Prayer

Guiding God,
we like to know where we are going
and what waits around the next bend.

When the way ahead feels uncertain,
we are tempted to rely only
on our own understanding.

Teach us to trust you.

Give us wisdom for the decisions before us,
courage for the unexpected turns,
and faith to take the next step
even when we cannot see the whole journey.

Remind us that wherever the river leads,
you are already there.

May we trust the One
who knows the way.

Amen.

Copyright © 2026 Ronda Welander