Detour Ahead

Recently, I had to drive downtown for an event.  Even though I’ve lived here for nearly 40 years, I still can’t navigate my way around the heart of our city without my GPS.  There are a lot of one-way streets!  And truth be told I only go downtown maybe a dozen times a year, so it is just unfamiliar to me.

I was headed to a house I’ve been to a few times now and considered not pulling up my GPS because I felt pretty sure I could find my way.  However, I decided to go ahead and set it up just in case.

Everything was going fine until I saw a large road-closed sign and a vehicle blocking the path I needed to take.  I could feel my heart begin to beat faster.  I glanced at the clock and knew if I could find an alternate route I could still make it on time.  I turned left hoping my GPS would recalibrate and get me where I needed to go.

The GPS started narrating new directions and I followed along.  Instantly, I realized there was a problem.  The roads were blocked off because of a marathon, but my GPS didn’t know about the race, so it rerouted me to a path headed back to the same street.

I rolled down my window and asked the police officer directing traffic for directions.  She shouted some words at me telling me which way to try next.  It didn’t work.  I ended up closer to my destination but still unable to connect to the road I needed.

At this point, I’m reminding myself to breathe.  This area is unfamiliar, so I don’t know which roads can get me where I need to go.

I found another police officer.  There was no one else around and he graciously paused to help me figure out what to do.  He told me I needed to go get on the highway and loop around a different way which would get me beyond the closed roads.  I listened carefully to his directions and hoped that this would get me where I needed to go.

As I got on the highway, headed away from the closed roads, my GPS caught up with me and led me to a road that would get me to my destination.   

This detour felt a lot like what happens in our lives at times.  We think we know where we are going.  We jump behind the wheel, on autopilot, and take off.  But then we run into a blocked road.  We try to reroute and at times end up coming back to the same blocked road time and again.

But maybe the Holy Spirit is inviting us onto a whole new path - a path that goes a different direction than what we expected, but takes us exactly where we need to go.

When you encounter roads that are blocked do you get anxious and worried, or do you have space to wonder if there is a different path altogether?

When we are in a season that is unfamiliar we don’t always know which way to go, but if we take the time to slow down and listen we will find our way one mile at a time.  Unlike my GPS, which isn’t always up to date, God is never surprised by the blocked roads along the way. 

God is with us, even when we aren’t sure where we are headed.  May his peace be evident to us at every turn.  
 

~  Melissa