Up until I was a young adult if you had to travel to a new address or place, the only way to plan out a route or get a source of direction was to pull out a paper map and plot your journey. Sometimes I would have written down turn-by-turn directions and pictograms and hoped that I would not get lost on the way. Now in the age of cell phones and technology, our phones have become instant and updated travel guides with turn-by-turn directions included. All I need to do is open the MAP Application and type in the destination address. I put the phone down and it tells me where to turn and calculates the location of my vehicle based on GPS ( Global Positioning System). Almost all of the time I arrive at my destination with little or no confusion or stress. In the odd event that I make the wrong turn, go too far, or have situations out of my control the GPS system instantly starts re-routing my route and recalculates how to arrive at my destination. While it is recalculating it uses my geological location to help me find another route to my desired destination. Over and over again the GPS will repeat the "Re-calculating route" until the new route has been decided upon.
"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, you will hear a voice saying, "This is the road! Now follow it." ( Isaiah 30:21 - Contemporary English Version)
Sometimes in life, things do not go exactly to plan. You get diagnosed with an illness, someone you love passes away, you lose your job, you are treated unfairly, missed opportunities, mental health issues, poor decisions, and circumstances out of your control. Also, good things can happen that might change the direction of where you were planning on going.
"You may think you are on the right road and still end up dead. Sorrow may hide behind laughter, and happiness may end in sorrow. You harvest what you plant, whether good or bad." Proverbs 14:12-14 Contemporary English Version)
I never once thought of where God was planning on us going, I never even asked or prayed about it. I just went through the motions of each day. Now that I have had time to look back upon my life and reflect I can imagine God sitting on his throne spamming the re-calculating route button throughout my life.
He has always been there plotting a journey with me, I just kept changing the route away from our plan and making it my plan.
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6 - English Standard Version)
I have been challenging myself to listen to the whispers of God and allow our paths to become one journey together.
