for those lost in a maze daze

I recently read a Christian fiction book where one of the characters was trying to explain to the other about how God longs to guide us.

Because you & I both know there are days when we sooooo need someone to take us by the hand and help us along when we feel like we are about to stumble.

The image the author shared resonated deeply within me, and made so much sense I will attempt to put it into words to share with you today.

We have a tendency to live life thinking we are in control & able to make all our own decisions. We are trained to become independent thinkers at school, and to think of ourselves first as modelled in today’s society.

Until the day I, you,  realize we are actually are in a maze.

Not an easy only one way to go maze but a multidirectional maze where each step either takes you deeper into the maze, or leads you further towards the exit.

A type of maze we will spend our whole life in.

How we spend that life as we navigate can make all the difference.

When quite young, my kids had a funny habit of chasing one another from room to room on our main floor in a continuous circle.  For years they went round & round, until one of them discovered they could turn around and chase the other back.

Until we realize there is another option, we sometimes stay on the same path longer than we are meant to.

Returning to this image I was sharing about…. the one character finally pointed out to the other,

Which is better when you are in a maze: seeing what is facing you at ground level, or a bird’s eye view of the entire maze?

That’s struck a chord within that is still working its way deeply within me.

What I see when I look at what is facing me is limited only to my narrow vision.  I cannot see the big picture based upon my own abilities, no matter how hard I try.

I do however know the One who sees all.  Who knows all.  Who gets me inside & out, coz He designed & hand crafted me.
Who wants to share His ways with me.

And you.

So instead of fretting over which way to go in front of me, I need to look up.

For He sees the path which is best for me to take, and will let me know, through His Word, a quiet whisper, a sense of direction, a peace to take the next step. 

As some of the decisions are more life impacting than others, I try to make sure I don’t react, but respond as He leads.  Before I move, I ask Him for confirmation.

Not because He is going to steer me wrong. but because I want to walk the path He has for me.

And I know that left to my own devices, I would react more out of selfishness and ease than wisdom.

There are a few crossroads up ahead in the near future, and I am asking Him for clarification before taking the next step.

Even though I don’t like to wait.

But I don’t want to end up going around the same part of the maze over & over again because I refused to listen.

Been there, done that, done with that.

What is mind numbingly awesome to me is how much God longs to take us that next step, to walk along side us, to equip, lead, teach & strengthen us as we go.

Just as Jesus looked to Him & sought His infilling & wisdom as He lived through His time on earth, God longs to do the same for each of us.

The pitfalls, repeated routes & dead ends we will miss along the way He leads, and the victories & blessings which will come our way?

Amazeing!