Need Directions?
By Elin Henderson
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 3:5-6
I was a few years too late for the discovery of the new little G.P.S. gadgets that are found all over the place nowadays. I moved overseas just as they were becoming popular and what a loss for me. I have a horrendous sense of direction. No one could use a permanent built-in G.P.S. more than I could! By Elin Henderson
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 3:5-6
This problem has now been magnified for me as I have to walk everywhere in the village where we work. My friends in the village can’t understand how I could think every hut, manioc field and coconut tree looks like the next, but it does! One day, while returning with some friends from a visit to see a new baby, I had one of my “direction” problems. They had to go on to their gardens and I thought, “No problem, I can easily backtrack and find my way home. This isn’t the first time I have been out in this area!” So, off I trekked, sure that I knew where I was going. I kept walking and walking, looking for the familiar landmarks, but the next thing I knew, I was lost. I looked up and saw a lady I’d met working in her field, so I embarrassingly ask her, “Do you know where my house is?” She smiled and calmly pointed about 100 meters over the trees in front of me and there it was. I thought I was walking toward my house, but all that time, I was walking parallel with it!
My friends in the village are still laughing about this story, but it was a good reminder of how much we need direction from above. We could all use a G.G.P.S. (God’s Global Positioning System)…and we have one in the form of the Holy Spirit. We need to be in tune to the gentle “beep” of the Spirit that says, “Wrong way!! Turn around!! Not good!!” Sometimes we ignore Him, thinking we can do better on our own.
There are many things that can pull us off track, but only one way to put us back! Let’s tune in to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our lives, allowing Him to guide and direct every part of our path. Let’s ask Him to help us be sensitive to any wrong turns or wanderings of our heart.
GOING DEEPER:
1. What in your life pulls you off track? When this happens, do you hear the warning “beeps” of the Holy Spirit?
2. What could you do to make sure you are following the direction of G.G.P.S?
FURTHER READING:
Psalm 32:8; I Thessalonians 5:19
Oakwood’s missionaries Elin Henderson and her husband Phil serve as church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa. Elin is mother to nine-year-old Callie and six-year-old Elias.
