finding your way

It has been said, “The shortest distance between point ‘A’ and point ‘B’ is a straight line.” It would be nice if we could fly so we could go straight home. That would reduce the amount of time we are out.

“Home” is a special place. It should be a place of peace and security. A place to feel comfortable and relaxed, but I realize it isn’t for everyone. I like being “home.” I don’t always enjoy being out. I have said I could be like Ted Kaczynski, living by myself in a small structure in Montana, and be okay. (Without the “Unabomber” part of course!)

I mentioned the other day how smart our car is. It knows where it is parked overnight and has labeled that location as “home.” So now, if we are out and need directions to find “home,” we can select it on the car’s GPS. We did that recently, and as we were pulling into the driveway, the car said, “Welcome home.”

For one who believes in God and has accepted His Son, Jesus, into their life, then we know that this Earth is not our home. In that regard, home is where your heart is, where your priorities are. Are you living for yourself, or are you living for God? Are you striving to build up treasures here on Earth, trying to make a name for yourself? Spoiler alert! You will never be satisfied. It will never be enough.

For here we have no permanent city, but we are looking for the one which is to come. Heb. 13:14 (AMPC)

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. Phi. 3:20 (NLT)

I have observed that some people are extremely reluctant to accept God. I believe they are more concerned about the kind of life they live, as if they enjoy their sins and don’t want to give them up. But at the same time, they seem to live a life of struggling and suffering. They don’t realize how much God loves them and wants to help them overcome the world. They fail to understand the kind of life they could have if they changed their address to heaven. Problems don’t disappear after we accept Jesus, but it sure is easier to go through them with Him!

Some eventually stop trying to do things their way and surrender to life in God. It’s as if it took them a long time to find “home,” but I am so glad they eventually do, and so are they. They now know that place of peace, security, comfort, and rest. And if you are new to living a life with God, then I have one thing to say, “Welcome home.”

Believe it or not, after my divorce, when it came to meeting a woman to potentially marry, I used to ask God to send her to my door and have her say, “Hi. I’m God’s woman for you.” In turn, I would say, “Great. Let me get my coat.” I was living in the Chicago area back then and it is cold 9 months out of the year. Guess what? It never happened. I didn’t like all of the effort it took to date after divorce, and I wasn’t real sure I even wanted to remarry, but one thing I did know, if God wanted to lead me that way He could have.

My approach was kind of like praying for money, but not going out and looking for a job. I used to tell my concerned friends, “Hey, I’m not looking for a wife, but my eyes aren’t closed either.”

One sure way to receive direction from God is to be moving. You can’t steer a car if it’s not rolling. With that said, you don’t stop praying while you are in motion. God can certainly open and close doors, or lead you to someone who knows someone who God can use to meet your need, or desire.

I know of a single woman who is looking for a mate. She keeps doing it her way, which seems as if she takes the first man to message her, and she gets involved in another long distance relationship that eventually ends badly. After a few days of hurt, and anger she’s back at it again. The problem is this; her expiration date is approaching. I get the sense she is not focusing on God first, and trusting him to lead her. There is nothing wrong with saying, “No” to a man when you get a check in your spirit. God will give her the desires of her heart when the right man comes along. In the meantime, she can have intimacy with God.

It’s important to yield to the plans of God.

I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. Jer. 29:11 (MSG)

For six years, before my retirement, I planned on buying an RV, travel America, and write. That didn’t happen then, but I now see a chance where it may happen in the future. My wife likes to add this phrase after making plans of her own, “If God permits.” Not a bad way to live at all.

“for we walk by faith, not by sight [living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God’s promises]” 2 Cor. 5:7 (AMP)

It’s not easy walking with God, I get that, but it sure is exciting!

Whether you need direction for a spouse, a job, a place to live, what to say to someone who needs to hear from God, etc. choose to live in boldness. Don’t sit in your living room and wait for the answers to come to you, oh, and don’t expect a billboard along the highway either, but get up, get out, and move. Then trust the one who has the wheel of your life. You’ll enjoy the destination that much better!