How Do We Hear God’s GPS?

 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it” (Isaiah 30:21).

I was down to the last message for a retreat I am speaking at and was asking God for the final topic, which ironically was the first message I would give on Friday night. The retreat theme is “God’s GPS” and each of the messages are based on traffic signs. So far I had: “U-Turn,” “Go,” “Detour” and “Yield.” Then as I was cleaning out my son’s closet over the weekend, there it was, a stop sign. Of course! Before we can go, we have to stop. It is the perfect way to kick off the weekend.

Why do we have to stop before we can hear God’s direction? Think about how it is in your car when you don’t have a clue where you are and you are dependent on GPS. Then a phone call comes in or there is loud talking in the back seat. Most times, you miss the direction.

Recalculating Route!

In the same way, it’s easiest to hear God’s navigation when you eliminate distractions and are still and quiet before him.

I will admit writing five messages while getting a house ready to sell has been a challenge. But what I found is when I stopped each morning and laid my ministry work at God’s feet, he provided every theme and every word. I then had the afternoon to work on packing things away. God is faithful when we push everything else aside to focus on him. It is interesting how he expands our time when we do.

What happens when we don’t stop? I think of a popular traffic circle near my house. Traffic circles make me more nervous than traffic lights. If you are driving the entire circle, you may “yield” once then “go” the next. You can only hope the other car yields when it’s your turn to go. Because if they don’t, KAPOW! When we don’t stop our lives on a regular basis and seek God’s direction, we will eventually crash. We can go only so far using our own GPS. Being directionally challenged, I’m lucky to make it to the end of the block.

Over my lifetime what I’ve found is that God has done the most powerful work through me, and in me, when I stop and ask for his direction. His way is always better.

Are you in need of direction? Have you searched for answers to no avail? Maybe it’s time to stop and connect with God’s GPS. When you do, the route and destination are in his hands.