God's Road Map

At every fork in the road, you have a choice: God's way or your way.

The other day, I was going to a friend's house, but I hadn't driven there after we'd moved into our new house, meaning that I didn't exactly know how to get there.  My mom diligently showed me how to get there (courtesy of Google Maps) and wrote the directions on a sticky note.  I understood how to get there clearly, but just to be safe, we turned on our GPS system in case I got lost.

I got into the car and headed toward my destination.  As I drove, I got to a point where the GPS was telling me one thing and my mom's directions were telling me another.  I trusted my mom's direction more (the GPS once tried to tell us to turn off of a mountain road and send us down the mountain...not by road) so I ignored the GPS.  But it kept telling me to turn around and go back to the way it had told me to go, which was an inefficient way to get there.  However, I kept ignoring it.  It never readjusted to help me get there (old technology anyone?) and insisted that I turn around, even when I arrived at my friend's house.

Maybe this is just a sign that I think too much, but I started comparing my trip to the journey of life.  Life is often compared to a road, right?  So we embark, knowing the destination is Heaven, and roughly knowing how to get there, but with no real idea of the roads we will be traveling.

God, like my mom did for me, gives us a map and a series of directions...except that instead of writing them on a sticky note, He wrote them in the Bible and on our hearts.  We can trust that He knows how to get us from where we are to where we're going.  The great thing is that He is with us at our starting point and our destination and everywhere along the way.

But often, the devil and the world love to tell us that we are going the wrong way.  "Take this road," they urge.  "It's faster and better, trust us.  Not only that, but you'll enjoy this road more."  We lose confidence in our instruction and listen, turning off our route, and go down the senseless, circuitous path until we are lost.  We look to the world for directions, but it only laughs at our misfortune.

On my trip, I was able to drive with confidence because I had my Bluetooth in my ear that, with a few tries of getting it to actually recognize my mom's name, would dial her number and connect me to help if I got lost or confused.  Thankfully, I didn't have any trouble, but I wasn't too nervous because I knew that I had a lifeline.

And God hasn't stranded us on life's journey without a lifeline either.  You could say that using a Bluetooth is like asking the Holy Spirit for guidance, connecting us to the Father and His direction for our life.

Another comfort I had was knowing that, if I did make a wrong turn and have to call out to my mom for help, she would help me get back on the road. She wouldn't judge me or get mad at me.  She might be a little disappointed, but she certainly wouldn't be angry.  She would help me get out, not beat me up about my failure.

So isn't it fantastic that God is the same way?  He forgives us when we ignore His road map and teachings...even when we do it intentionally (which by the way is pretty often.  Everything we do is a choice).  We only have to ask and turn back onto the road back.

Here's a thought: When you get sidetracked, even if you find yourself in the wrong town, the instant you get turned around and headed back in the right direction, you are back on track going toward your destination.  No matter how far off the path you were, you're now going toward your destination just as if you'd never left the path.  Sure, it might take a little longer (or a lot), but you are still going the right way.  You are still learning and improving and getting closer.  Would it have been easier and quicker to go the right way from the start? Definitely.  But can you still learn and benefit by messing up and getting lost? Absolutely.

In conclusion:
*Listen to God's road map--it will make things simpler, even if the way isn't easy or doesn't seem quite right--just obey God.
*Ignore the cries of the world--it cannot give you anything better than getting to your destination.
*Call out to your lifeline--if you get lost, remember to call out to the One who can  get you back on the road; He's with you the whole time and will keep you on track.
*Keep going--persevere, even when it's hard and you fail; don't get discouraged by having to backtrack.
*Keep your eyes on the Destination--ignore the temptations and the storms that threaten your journey; they can't get you off the path unless you let them
*Don't listen to your GPS if it tells you to drive off the side of a mountain.

I Am A Sinner.

I am a Christian.

I am not perfect.

And I am both at the same time.

I am a sinner. I am a child of the King.

I go to church. I smile, I sing, and I say all the right things.

But I go home and fight with my sister, snap at my parents, and watch TV instead of spending time with God.

I look really good. I look like a good Christian girl. I do all the good Christian things.
But inside I'm a fallen, broken sinner.

Liars. Thieves. Murderers. Worse. But I'm no better than them. I deserve to go to hell.  I deserve no better than them because I'm one of them. A sinner. I'm going to hell.

Except for one thing.

God's grace.

For some unexplainable reason, God chose me. He chose to give me salvation.  He chose to save me from hell. I did nothing. As much as I would love to think I did, that I contributed to my salvation, I did nothing .

Nothing.

God did everything.

I'm broken. But God chose to love me, to save me, to bring me to live with Him in Heaven forever.
I have said this before, but if you haven't noticed, I really like to keep control in my hands. The fact that I can't control even a smidgen of my salvation is difficult for me to swallow.  I mean, if all the good things I do don't contribute to my salvation, what's the point?

My all-time favorite verse is Ephesians 2:8-10.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

God's gift of grace, received through faith, saves us from eternal condemnation.  Not one thing we can ever do can contribute one bit to God's gift. Like it or not, that's the way God made it to be.

So why do we act like we have anything over anyone else? We act like we somehow did something that made God pick us. And then we treat non-Christians like we're better, like we deserved the salvation we have.

That is exactly why God made it the way it is: so that no one can boast.

Because if we contributed anything to boast about, you'd better believe I would be out there boasting.

But we can boast.  We can boast in what God has done for us. (This idea is repeated often in Paul's writings, especially to the Corinthians.) We can boast in the cross.

I mentioned good works earlier. It seems that God puts a lot of emphasis on the way we live and that we do good to our neighbors.  But if those works don't add anything to our salvation, why bother?

I'm glad you asked. This is for a few reasons: 1) The Bible is like an instruction manual, telling us how God designed us to live and how to live as a follower of Christ. 2) I believe that, when we obey God wholeheartedly, if imperfectly, God is pleased; He loves us and wants the best for and from us. 3) Good works, especially kingdom-building works, have been set out for us long ago. 

We have been given a mission to fulfill in our lives.  If we spend all our time and effort trying to earn our salvation, we won't have any left over to complete our quest. 

Your salvation has been paid in full.  Stop trying to save yourself; you can't. Only God can, and He did it all. It's done.  You can't add to it. Instead, let God show you the good works He has prepared beforehand for you to walk in them.