Trust the Navigator

I’ve got paths on my mind this morning.  How do we know we are on the right path?

I remember the stress of  traveling in the days before we all had GPS.  I remembering trying to gather, or give, directions.  I have a good sense of direction, and I always gave lots of landmarks.  I tried to put myself in the place of the person who sees each step, each turn with new eyes.  I also remember that, when I was trying to follow directions, there was a certain level of anxiety as I wondered, “Did I write that down correctly?  Did they remember every step in the journey?  Was I so deep in thought that I missed a turn?  Have I gone too far?  How much further is it?  WHERE AM I?”

Of course, since the advent of the amazing technology that is Global Positioning—or as I heard it called in Europe, “SAT-NAV” (satellite navigation), it’s as simple as plugging in an address.  In the US, it’s nearly fullproof, and my stress-level is completely different.  I guess you could say I have faith in the Navigator. 

(Now, driving in Ireland around 2009 was a totally different experience.  Ask me about the time I was hunting for a B&B, and the ‘sat-nav’ announces, on a highway median, ‘You have now arrived at your destination.’  Ummmm…NO.  But I digress.)

I remember as a child that, before a big road trip, my parents would purchase the latest Rand-McNally Road Atlas, so that they’d have the most current lay of the land, with construction updates.  We’d pore over that atlas, and we’d make a plan of what we thought the best route might be.  But there was no way to account for accidents, or new construction projects that started after the atlas was published.  God forbid you might have an old atlas!  And when you got to one of these surprises, there’d be a certain amount of panic, and you’d consider for a minute that you might end up on a great, endless roundabout, a la Chevy Chase in European Vacation.  “Look kids!  Parliament House!  Big Ben!” 

When we set out on a journey these days, many times, we don’t even consult a map.  We acquire the address, we open up our maps app, make sure it’s plugged in to a power source, and tap that little blue arrow.  (Confess: how many of you have channeled your inner Willie Nelson, and belted out a little “On the road again…Just can’t wait to get on the road again….” on a road trip?   Mmmmm-hmmm.  You know you have.)  You top off your gas tank, and you’re on your way.  And that’s almost the last time you concern yourself with the path ahead.  You just trust the navigator.

You know where I am going with this, I’m sure.  When are we going to trust our heavenly Navigator?  When will we simply plug in Heaven’s address, and set out, trusting that the best journey has been planned for us?  When will we only concern ourselves with fueling up on prayer and the Word of God, and keeping our minds and hearts from being distracted from our final destination?  There are plenty of distractions, plenty of enticing detours, and if we trust our human sense of direction in place of the all-seeing eye of the Satellite far above the earth, where will we end up?  These days, I’m amazed at how, if we pay attention to the GPS, it can even tell us where traffic is heavier than normal, or where it may even be stopped altogether.  Our God is no different.  He sees the end from the beginning.

Job said, in the midst of his deepest valley, his darkest trial, “But He knows the way that I take;
When He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.”(Job 23:10 NKJV)  It’s a test, no doubt.  But the Navigator isn’t caught off-guard…He KNOWS the Way.  He knows your path.  He knows every single twist and turn and roadblock and traffic jam.  And He is well able to get you to your Destination.

Go ahead—plug in Heaven’s address.  Follow His plan, and trust His knowledge and understanding of the best route.  You might even be pleasantly surprised at some of the beautiful scenery along the way.

I’ll see you there.