Read your map

Those that know me well know that I make a monthly trip to my parent’s house.   It has become a part of my routine.  There really is no good way to get there.  When we first moved to Greenville I would go into Mt. Pleasant and then head to their house from there.  It was well out of the way but I didn’t know a better way.  I then tried a different way and found that I didn’t like that one as well.  I kept looking at a map and trying to figure out  a way I would rather take.  There is several different ways to get there.  There is no straight way.  I didn’t mind the time it took to get there it was just that I couldn’t find a way that made more sense.  Finally after I got frustrated with trying to figure out what way was best on my own, I asked my dad.  I was at their house and said “Dad, is there a better way to get home than the way that I have been taking?”  He then pulled up a map and began to show me and then wrote it down for me.  I was a little nervous trying it out for the first time on my own and when I left it was pretty dark.  I said my goodbyes and was off to see if I could achieve this on my own.  If you have ever driven out in the country you know that when it gets dark there are NO street lights.  Mile after mile it was not just dark it was pitch black.  I had my headlights on the high beams and still could only see a short distance in front of me.  I was nervous that I would miss a turn or turn at the wrong spot.  I couldn’t see what turn I needed to make ahead of time, I had to be right on it for my headlights to pick up the road sign.  I missed one turn but the directions my father gave me were so clear.  He said “If you come to a dirt road, you missed your turn.  Turn around and go back to the very first cross roads and turn left.”  So that is exactly what I did.  Guess what, I got home.  And even a few minutes sooner than the way I took before.  That has now become the way I take every single month.  I really do love that way too.  It is a beautiful drive and I get to reflect on God’s creation most of the way.

By now maybe you know where I’m going with this one.  The last couple months on my drive God brought this to my mind.  He showed me that there are many different paths to take in this life.  Many choose to go it all alone.  They travel blindly in hopes that they will get to the place they intended to end.  Some take paths that start out with a map and then as the trip progresses they decide that they don’t need the map and put it aside.  Leaning on their own wisdom only to find out later that they made a few wrong turns when they did.  Some follow a map their entire lives only to find out at the end that they could have taken a better way to get there that might have saved a little heartache and pain.  “The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you.” ~Psalm 32:8 (NLT).  We as Christians tend to think that we have “seen” the map and that after a while we will just remember how to get there.  Well the fact of the matter is, our memory just isn’t that good people.  I tried time and time to find that perfect way to my parents and it wasn’t until I gave up and my dad gave me not only a better way but the exact, picture perfect instructions on how to find my way to the end of my journey.  My challenge to you this week is this… do you seek God only when you have had enough of trying your way and then you cry out and ask God to remind you of the directions He gave you?  Do you forget to look at the beauty along your journey?  Do you find a new path when it gets dark and you can’t see where your turn is?  Do you trust that God will show you where and when to turn?  He has a map uniquely designed for you, are you allowing God to lead you?  He never promised that the roads through this life wouldn't have potholes and cracks but He did promise that He would give us peace that passes all understanding when we come to them.  Let him!