Get Lost!

I hate being lost. Hate. It. There are few things more stressful to me than not knowing exactly where I'm going. I'm not even particularly comfortable with guessing.

It's a control thing.

It's true in general, and it's true in my life as well. I've never been somebody who always needs to have a plan, but I've always had the need to be in control. Even if I didn't know where I was headed, I had to know where I was. There's a difference, you see, in knowing where you are and actually having a destination. For me, the destination was never as important as simply knowing my location.

Yet, as I seek to follow God's Will, I find I sometimes don't even know that much. And I'll be honest: it's unsettling. This has been what might be called a "growth area" for me, as I learn and grow in Christ. Giving in. Giving up control. Recognizing that, even when I don't know where I am or where I'm going, He does.

Have you ever followed a friend to a destination, because you weren't familiar with the area? I still do that. Having lived here for over a year, I still don't always recognize where I am... and certainly have no idea how to get wherever it is we're going. So, I wind up following somebody. If you've been in this situation, you also know that knot of panic that settles in your stomach if, Heaven forbid, they go under a yellow light, stranding you at the red.

This is what it feels like to step outside of God's will. Speaking from the experience of years of wandering around lost, you find you lose that need to have control as soon as you hear His voice say, "Here I am."

A Psalm of David.

23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
² He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
³ He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

⁴ Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell^[a] in the house of the Lord

(For more on this topic, see my earlier 2-part post, Where To, God? Part 1 ... Part 2)