It is so amazing how the Lord continues to speak to me on the highway. His voice is so clear, probably because I am not talking while in the car. (That’s a lesson for below). My son, Damión had a game in Cleveland over the weekend, we went up Friday, back home on Saturday. Quick plug…WE WON WHOHOOO!!! On my way home, I wanted to stop and take a quick bathroom break and grab a bite to eat, so from Highway 70, I veered to the 270-bypass using my Google maps. The next direction it gave me was to take exit 32, which was about 9 miles.
I need to point something out here. The exit numbers are going in ascending order: meaning, 1, 2, 3, 4; opposed to descending 4, 3, 2, 1. Now moving on, as I approached exit 30, I moved from the fast-left lane, to the far-right lane, in preparation to take the exit. I proceed to pass exit 30, and of course natural progression to be 31, then 32. Well, it was not 32, but exit 33. I chuckled a bit to myself, as I was thinking, did I miss it? Did it just skip exit 32 altogether? No, because right after the sign for exit 33, the next sign read “Exit 32, 1 ½ miles ahead.” Like, WHAT??
Just as He always does, He whispered, “Thank you for listening and paying attention.” Again, you see I was quiet, not talking, and able to hear. The Lord’s voice, at times, is a small still voice; 1 Kings 19:12, that only you can hear, providing you aren’t doing so much talking. God being the perfect gentleman, will not force His ways upon us or even force us to listen. Nevertheless, He speaks to us continuously; we just have to be in the position to listen to what He is trying to say.
Not only do we have to be in the right position to listen, but we must pay attention to His direction. Google maps gives direction according to a specific location we plug in, and it is up to us to trust the guidance of the maps to get there. After all, the app was created to give us directions taking the quickest route. In parallel, we go before the Lord with our petition. He then speaks direction and gives guidance through the aid of the Holy Spirit ultimately drawing us back to Him. However, it is up to us to trust His ways, even when they don’t make sense; Jeremiah 17:7. If we are not careful, we will miss where He is taking us or miss what He has to say. Trusting God is having enough faith to take step 1 in Him, not knowing what step 2 is (Joyce Meyer). Following after God’s voice is exercising your trust and faith in Him.
The Lord also spoke to me, that I do not know everything...YIKES (for those control freaks out there)! Being honest, this is what I heard the loudest! Often times, we assume we know the next step we are to take. We have experienced somewhat the same; therefore, we know how it is going to end. Or, we have in our minds, the end result, and have determined how we are going to get there. Basically, assuming the position of God in our lives…OUCH! We lean on ourselves quite a bit. God’s word tells us in Proverbs 3:5-6, to trust in the Lord within all thine heart; lean not to our own understanding. In all ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct thy path. Google maps was leading me the correct way, but I “thought” I knew how far the exit was due to its was natural progression…leaning on what I thought. God knows all, sees all, and we are here to fulfill His purpose; Isaiah 46: 9b-10. It is not for us to take it upon ourselves to create our own direction. God is God, and we are not!
We must always remember to submit ourselves before the Lord in whatever direction we are seeking, listen to His voice, and be at peace while trusting Him for the way to get there according to His will; Job 22:21. You know the hymn, “Trust and Obey,” for He knows best. Two simple words or actions, yet we spend more time thinking we know it all instead of listening to His instructions. God knows the beginning of our life story, till the end of our last breath. Will you trust Him? Will you allow Him to take you on the journey and path He has already created for you? Will you listen to His voice?
