Proverbs 19:20-21 NLT
Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life. [21] You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail.
Good Morning:
We’ve all done it, made a wrong turn and had to circle the block to get back on the right road, or even scarier, turned the wrong way on a one-way street. Particularly when you are driving in a heavily congested and unfamiliar city, it is really easy to get turned around, miss a turn or turn the wrong way. But eventually, we figure out what we did wrong and get back on the right path to reach our destination.
God deals with our hearts in the same way. We often get into unfamiliar territory that is a heavily congested time in our life and we often make bad decisions choosing the “wrong turn.”
But God!
Those two simple words are what saves us from our own demise. God is always there for us and rescues us from our bad decisions. We have to be reminded over and over again that the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God. It is a life lesson that somehow, we as foolish humans, have a hard time learning. We plow through decisions even when God is putting “stop signs” in our way. Then when everything goes wrong, we cry out to Him to rescue us.
1 Corinthians 3:18-19 NKJV
[18] Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. [19] For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their own craftiness”;
The rescue may not always be what we expect and it may not be an immediate answer. God uses our disobedience to teach us and make us wiser. Sometimes God will let us “wander in the wilderness” for a while because of a bad decision, as He did with the Israelites. They kept making bad decisions and did not trust in His plan so, as a loving Heavenly Father, He let them wander in the wilderness for 40 years as a way of teaching them to fully trust in Him and His plans.
Numbers 32:13a NKJV
[13] So the LORD’s anger was aroused against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years…
When we find ourselves “in the wilderness,” God then, and only then, has our full attention. It is during this time that God can really teach us as we surrender to Him and His will. There are four simple steps to take to get us back on track to the road that God has for us:
1. Stop the Car — stop what you are doing, pray and ask for His forgiveness and let God renew your spirit.
Psalm 51:10-12 NLT [10] Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. [11] Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. [12] Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.
2. Ask for Directions — There is no shame in pulling the car over and asking how to get to your destination. In the same way, ask God to show you the way to get back on track with His plan.
Psalm 86:11 NKJV [11] Teach me Your way, O LORD; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name.
3. Follow the Directions — God’s wisdom cannot be measured and we should not question it but yield to it and follow what the Holy Spirit is guiding us to do.
Proverbs 20:24 NLT [24] The LORD directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?
4. Look straight ahead — do not dwell on past mistakes, learn from them! Then look ahead to the corrected path that God is showing you.
Proverbs 4:25-27 NLT [25] Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. [26] Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. [27] Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.
Life lessons happen when we do life. We learn from our mistakes and God teaches us to make better choices in our future decisions through those “wrong turns.” There is a reason that Proverbs teaches us that those with gray hair have lots of wisdom. I (myself being one with a little gray hair) have made plenty of mistakes and try to incite upon my own adult children and others around me a few gems of wisdom. There is no shame in asking for advice or having someone pray with you about decisions who have made plenty of wrong turns in their life. I think most of us in the gray-haired club would be more that happy to give advise based on our own experiences.
Proverbs 20:29 NLT
[29] The glory of the young is their strength; the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old.
Be blessed today knowing you have a Heavenly Father that is always willing to forgive and guide you to get back on track to the path that He has for your life. This life has many twists and turns, but through praying and yielding to the will of God, we will maneuver our way and perhaps incite some wisdom to others along the way.
I love you and am praying for you today!
Dad