Are You Lost?

Recently my wife, Tammy, and I took a trip to Italy to celebrate a milestone wedding anniversary. We had saved up a long time and looked forward to seeing sites we had only read about and seen in pictures up until then. After flying to Rome and exploring its beauty and ancient history, we headed to the farming region in central Italy known as Tuscany, famous for its vineyards and olive groves. We hired a driver who assured us he knew how to get us to our small hotel in the rural village where we would be staying.

Leaving behind the urban sprawl of Rome, we were soon zooming toward the lush green hills of the Italian countryside. As our driver began weaving his way through back roads and country lanes, I realized he wasn’t using GPS or his phone to navigate. Feeling a little concerned, I brought up our hotel’s name on my own phone only to discover I had no reception.

After a few more minutes, we saw what appeared to be a village around the next curve. When our driver slowed and brought the car to a stop in front an osteria, a quaint little rustic restaurant, Tammy and I breathed a sigh of relief and assumed we had reached our destination. But then our driver said, “Just let me get my bearings before we continue.”

While we waited and our driver studied an ancient map that might have belonged to the apostle Paul, Tammy discovered her phone had a signal and pulled up our location on a satellite map. We were nowhere close to where we wanted to go! When I tried to show our driver, he simply shook his head, and I said, “No worry, my friend, I know how to get there.”

As we pulled away, the afternoon light was beginning to fade. We saw no other signs of life anywhere. We knew where we wanted to go. We thought we had the right directions. We assumed our tools of technology would work. We even had a driver with knowledge of the area.

But we were lost.

Unfortunately, we all get lost — if not physically and geographically, then spiritually and emotionally.

We reach a juncture where we don’t know which way to go. A job offer, an opportunity to move, a new relationship, a sense of God’s calling — any one of these may be the catalyst, but taking the next step without knowing exactly where your new path will lead can be both exciting and frightening.

Can you relate? Maybe you know something is missing and long for a clearer sense of purpose and direction but just can’t seem to find it. Or perhaps you’ve have been on a spiritual journey at a comfortable pace for most of your life — so comfortable, in fact, that you feel caught in a rut, spinning your wheels in a life that feels predictable, even boring. You long for deeper meaning, deeper joy, a deeper connection to God but don’t know where to turn or how to step off the treadmill you’re on.

Or maybe you’re simply exhausted. Perhaps a major detour has left you reeling — a health crisis, divorce, or job loss has rerouted you from the path you once thought your life would follow. You know God has a plan for your life and have caught glimpses of it from time to time. But now you’re weary and not sure which way to turn.

It may seem like a cliché, but it’s true: We’re all on a journey. And at various points along this journey, we all ask, “What’s next? Which way do I go? Which direction is the right direction? Where is God leading me?” During these crossroads moments, we need to pause and remember our priorities. We need to look beyond what’s logical or convenient or advantageous. Jesus said,

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. — Matthew 7:13-14, NIV

No matter where we may be in life, we can trust God as our ultimate GPS, our soul’s true compass, leading us on an adventure of faith that’s purposeful, joyful, and significant for eternity.

Written for Devotionals Daily by Chris Hodges, author of What’s Next?

* * *

Your Turn

Being lost can be frightening. When we realize we don’t know where we are or which way to go, we can trust God that He knows the way and He will lead us there. How has that been proven in your life? Come share with us on our blog! We want to hear from you! ~ Devotionals Daily

Save on What’s Next?