"Re-Calculating!"

Rain, rain, go away.....My weather app on my phone tells me that not only is today's rain likely to continue throughout the day, we are in for more rain the end of the week...and next week. Can I just say that I sure would like to see some sunny days?

My weather app is something I use on a daily basis. Another aspect of technology that has become valuable to my husband and me is the GPS. We are on our second GPS device and now that we have a built-in navigation system in our car, we really enjoy the convenience of that. Whether we are on a long trip like our recent trip to Illinois, visiting church members, or trying to find an unfamiliar hospital, certain business, or restaurant, the GPS makes it so much easier.

I heard someone say recently that our Christian walk with the Lord is not so much like Google Maps as it is like a GPS. As I thought about that, it is very true. Google Maps lets you put in a starting point and your desired destination, and voila - you get a complete and detailed mapping of the entire trip - where to start out, what time you will arrive, which route is best to take, and what to expect along the way. It even gives you alternate routes to select from.

Don't you wish the Christian life was like that! We would be handed a map with our starting point, ending point, and all we would have to do is follow the printed directions. We would be able to see the instructions for our entire life all in one glance.

No, following God is more like a GPS. With the GPS you still put in your starting point and your desired destination, but unlike Google Maps, it doesn't give you the plan for the trip all at once. It gives you directions one step at a time. Turn here. Now exit there. Now continue for X amount of miles. Make a right hand turn. If we pay attention, and precisely follow the instructions, we will (hopefully) end up at the right place. Thankfully, God's directions are always right!

When we are following God, He doesn't let us see the entire route at once. We can only see the next step. He leads us along, one step at a time. We have to pay attention to His leading and trust Him for each moment. I am reminded of 2 Cor. 5:7, "For we walk by faith, and not by sight." Psalm 119:105 puts it in terms of a light. "Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." A light sheds just enough light for us not to stumble and to be able to see our next step.

Something else with the GPS that always makes me chuckle is the voice that says "Re-Calculating!" When we venture off the route to make a stop for gas or for a meal, we are chided that our route needs to be re-calculated. I always imagine hearing a twinge of annoyance in that voice, even though it is a computer and I remind myself that computers don't have feelings! Recently, while on a trip to visit one of our sons, we took an alternate route, knowing from experience that the main route would be a traffic nightmare at that time of day. When we turned off the main and recommended route, we heard "Re-Calculating!" for miles as the GPS tried unsuccessfully to get us back to the main route.

Sometimes God has to give us the "Re-Calculating!" message. It might be that we have gotten off His desired path for us and He needs to bring us back into His will. We can be thankful that God always knows the best plan for us. Psalm 18:30 - "As for God, His way is perfect." He is always good and He is always faithful, and if we heed to His voice He will lovingly guide us back onto the right path.

Or it may be that God gives us a "Re-Calculating!" message when the life that we have planned is changed. We so often have expectations of how things are supposed to be, and how our day or our week or even our life is supposed to go. God may have another plan, and it is up to us to heed His "Re-Calculating!" message and be obedient and submissive to His will for us. I have become convinced in recent days that unfulfilled expectations are one of the main causes of disappointment and unhappiness in our lives. How we react to His "Re-Calculating!" message determines our outlook and our peace and joy.

How about you? Are you depending on God's leading on a step-by-step basis? Are you discontent because He hasn't revealed His entire plan to you for this thing you are trusting Him for? Can you respond with trust to His "Re-Calculating"?

Lovingly,
Kathi