Psalm 23:3 (NIV) he restores my soul. He guides me in paths
of righteousness for his name's sake.
A few years ago Joanne and I ended
up on what amounted to a logging road in the middle of nowhere because I
thought the GPS on my phone seemed reliable. I thought of that horrible
experience when reading this story in the news…
“Depending on a GPS is a daily occurrence for most
drivers. Whether it is by phone, in dash, or a portable unit we all use them.
But it goes even further than ‘use,’ we trust these units to take us where we
ask. And when it starts taking us into bad places we assume that the GPS knows
what it is doing and wouldn't take us to a bad place. Sometimes even the worst
case scenario can happen though. The park rangers at Death Valley National Park
in California call it ‘death by GPS.’ It describes what happens when your GPS
fails you, not by being wrong, exactly, but often by being too right. It does
such a good job of computing the most direct route from Point A to Point B that
it takes you down roads which barely exist, or were used at one time and
abandoned, or are not suitable for your car, or which require all kinds of
local knowledge that would make you aware that making that turn is bad news. Most
of these incidents don't end in death, but rather in bafflement. A woman in
Bellevue, Washington drove her car into a lake because her GPS said it was a
road. A man in Yorkshire, England almost drove his car off a cliff. The answers
in these circumstances? - ‘The GPS told
us we could drive there.’”
You wonder how many people in our world today are
putting their faith and trust in some things that will end up taking them where
they don’t want to go. When the results are serious trouble or difficulty they
scratch their heads and can’t quite figure out what happened. But whatever they
were trusting in told them it would get them there. In the meantime, though,
they face danger or even loss of life.
The Lord will never give us a wrong turn or take us
down a wrong road. We will never go astray if we follow Him and use His Word as
our guide for life. This doesn’t mean we will have no hardships, but it does
encourage us to know that we can never be lost and that His abiding presence
and guidance is always with us. There are no wrong turns for the person who
follows Jesus faithfully.
Psalm 119:9-11 (NIV) 9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By
living according to your word. 10 I seek you with all
my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. 11 I
have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
Psalm 119:105 (NIV) Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light
for my path.
Hebrews 13:5-6 (NIV) 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money
and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I
leave you; never will I forsake you." 6 So we say
with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can
man do to me?"
PRAYER: Father, I confess how often I think I know
what I am doing and where I am going, but I’m really listening to myself or something
other than you. Keep me focused on your Word, and let my heart desire and love
to follow it more than anything else. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.”
Jesus
Christ is Lord!
Scott
No comments:
Post a Comment