Friday, April 1
Wandering
Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. —Deuteronomy 8:2
There should be a Bible verse that says, “Blessed are those who wander through life looking for their purpose and calling like Israelites wandering through the wilderness.” There must have been days when the Israelites looked around and thought, “I know we have passed this place before; when are we going to stop walking in circles?” Sometimes the road isn’t a narrow, rocky, rough path that is difficult to move forward on. Sometimes the path is wide, very wide, Sahara Desert wide. With no struggles to provide boundaries, there can be endless options, distractions, opportunities. It is in those times when we can lose our focus. We forget to listen for the voice of God as it is drowned out by the busyness. The urgency to reach out to God can wane, unlike when the road is rough and we are in need. We wait for a sign.
I struggled for many years looking for God’s purpose in my life. I worked full time but felt that was just something I was doing until He made known His purpose for me. I was waiting for a sign. I mentioned this to a friend at work one day and he asked, “How do you know that this isn’t your purpose? That your work isn’t your mission field?” I was stunned. I had been “wandering” around for years looking for God’s path for me. I had not realized that I was already on it until God sent a message to me through a friend. I have come to realize that wandering is ok. What we think of as going forward, backward and sideways may just be the road we are guided to take – not the straight path to the end but a curvy, winding tour through many God-filled moments. God is with us when we are on the rough parts of our life journey and on the smooth winding ones.
Dear God, please help us to wake each day and look to You for guidance. Though the path is sometimes unclear, remind us that you are with us, that Jesus gave his life for our salvation, and that the Holy Spirit moves in our hearts. Amen.
Susan Lambert