Journey

The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you."

Genesis 12:1 

 

Following God's direction can give us cause to wonder if He has lost His senses.  I wonder if Abram followed God's instructions without question.  Think about it, God told Abram to pack everything up and move.  And in God's words..."to the land I will show you."  Remember Jeremiah 29:11 where God tells us "'For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord. ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you a future filled with hope.'"  God has the plans, knows the plans, and will fulfill those plans.  We don't.  So when God says, "I have plans for you and it's part of your journey on this Earth" we can fully trust Him.

 

But how many times have we questioned God?  How many times have we doubted God's choices?  How many times have we been too scared to have faith in God's plan?  Quite a lot, in my own life.  Yet if God had told me all about my journey through life, I, most likely, would have become far too overwhelmed.  But God tends to reveal His journey for us one step at a time.  Remember, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step."  God shows us that one step at a time...we can trust Him, we have faith in His love for us, we have faith in His plan for us, we believe that He will get us to the next step.

 

Trust....Faith....Love! 

Where Am I Going?

The Lord directs the steps of the godly.
    He delights in every detail of their lives.

Psalm 37:23 

 

 I don't know about you, but I'm one of those people who likes to know where I am going, how long it will take me to get there, what I am supposed to do when I do arrive, and how long will I be there.  This trait applies to pretty much every journey I take.  Now, having said that, God has been, and continues to, teach me that His plans for me include journeys I could never have imagined and I need to not be so OCD about them, because He is the one in charge...not me.

 

For most of my life, my spiritual journey has been more like a stubborn mule carrying a blind man to market.  "I'm going to go where I want to go and that is that!" And I'll be honest, God is extremely patient.  He let me wander where I was determined to go for most of my life, and let me screw up, mess up, bungle, muss, fuss, cuss until I reached the point where I was willing to listen.  I won't say my journey now has become a smooth glide along the puffy clouds.  I still have lots of moments where I question God's wisdom for some of the places He takes me, but I'm learning that God's plan is a lot better than anything I could have planned.

 

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." - Douglas Adams.  Think about that.  Where I intended to go wasn't where I needed to be, but God brought me where I was needed.  And I can't imagine being anywhere else.

Patient?

Love is patient and kind.

1 Corinthians 13:4 

 

Almost every wedding ceremony has the reading of Paul's first letter to the Corinthian Church where he lays out what Love is.  Let me very clear about this: True Love is HARD sometimes!  Why?  Have you ever tried to love someone who is in a foul mood?  Have you ever tried to love someone when YOU were in a foul mood?  Love is challenging!

 

You see, true love is NOT disposable!  True love is a daily DECISION!  Every day we must decide to love and, let's face it, some days the decision is easier to make than others.  That's why LOVE IS PATIENT!  Patience is staying in the journey for the long haul, and that is what true love is, a journey.  

 

There have been times I have been very impatient in love and the result was a lot of hurt feelings, anger, frustration, and worst of all...silence.  Why was I so impatient? Because I wanted MY way and MY way only.  Not a good way to journey.  But one of the awesome aspects of God is He is the God of second chances.  Imagine if you only had one shot at love and if you missed or messed up, "Sorry, but you lost. Thank you, enjoy your lonely life."

 

But God is not like that, instead He expects us to learn from our errors so we, hopefully, don't make the same mistakes again.  God is the God of Second Chances and THAT proves He is patient with us.

Side By Side

"Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?"

Amos 3:3

 

A number of years ago, Dean Martin performed a song called, "Side By Side".  Think about this, is a journey possible if there is no agreed upon direction?  Is it possible for us to do ANYTHING together if the direction is not agreed?  Can we carry on a conversation when we can't decide the subject to discuss?  If we try then we are to idiots just talking to ourselves.

 

A church youth pastor wanted to emphasize this point by having a "Random Race."  Each of youth was blindfolded (it was held in the gym so there were few obstacles) and they were turned in different directions.  Then with the "BANG" of the cap gun they all started running.  However, the finish line location was never provided and everyone took off in their own direction.  How well do you think the race went?  I'll admit, it was pretty funny to watch, but the finish line location had never been agreed on, nor had the direction of the race been agreed on.  

 

Every day, we must agree on the direction we are willing to go with others.  Who are you willing to walk "Side By Side" with?