Recalculating!

This morning I am thinking about the Garmin my daughter bought me for my birthday.  I’ve had to use it a lot more than usual over the past few weeks.  One thing I’ve realized is that I have a tendency to really pay attention and listen carefully to the Garmin’s directions if I don’t know where I am or where I’m going.  However, I noticed the other day that I tend to ignore it if I feel pretty confident about my location and destination.  In fact, I find myself getting a bit annoyed with its seemingly snippy announcement that it is “recalculating” because I’ve chosen to take a route other than the one it is suggesting.  I confess that I sometimes leave the Garmin turned off until I think I need it, even though I know I should have it set before I ever put the car in gear, rather than fiddling with it in the middle of driving.  When I first got my Garmin, I used to turn it on for even the most mundane trips to places I had gone numerous times.  I was just so excited to have this new tool available to me!  I remember how one day I decided to follow the Garmin’s directions, rather than my own familiar route, to one of my offices.  I was genuinely surprised to discover that I got there much more quickly than if I had gone the way I knew so well!  I was so surprised that I even tried experimenting for a few days, alternating between the Garmin’s way and my own, until I was convinced that the Garmin’s way was faster.  As I sit here praying for God’s guidance and direction, as I do each morning, it occurs to me that I sometimes treat His still, small voice just like my Garmin.  I love knowing that He is ever with me to guide me.  I delight in His Word that says He will direct my paths, as I acknowledge Him in all my ways.  To be honest, however, I don’t always listen.  In some areas of my life, my actions reflect an attitude of my heart that I probably would never express out loud.  It says to Him, “I’ve got this right now.  I know where I am and where I’m going.  I’ll listen to You when I feel like I really need direction.”  I reflect on the many times I have perceived His leading, but I chose to take other paths…perhaps routes that I thought would be more “scenic.”  But He knows best my purpose, my potential, and my path.  In His faithfulness, He will bring me to the desires of my heart and the fulfillment of His gifts and calling in every area of my life.  It looks like a primary source of delay has been me!  I am so grateful that, even when I stubbornly insist on going my own way, He continues to speak, offering me wisdom, if I would just receive it.  Even when I get completely off track, He lovingly recalculates my course, accounting for my missteps and mistakes.  Today, I will listen and follow His directions.