I wonder if you have ever tried to find your way around by car somewhere and become hopelessly lost. I clearly remember that happening to me once in a new suburb of western Sydney where there are endless roundabouts and the streets seem to head in so many different directions. But I also remember another occasion when, after speaking at a church in a gracious, old, northern Sydney suburb, I could not get my bearings at all. Eventually, I resorted to looking up Google maps on my phone and was soon rescued. Phew!
In recent weeks, two lots of visitors trying to find us here in Sydney have been led astray by their car’s GPS at exactly the same spot as each other. In both cases, that disembodied voice talking so nicely to them was insistent they could turn right off Windsor Road at a particular street, but there were two problems. Firstly, there was no street sign at the relevant spot, so how could our visitors know this was the right one to take? Secondly, once they had missed it, they discovered the next corner said ‘No Right Turn’—and the next—and the next! Admittedly, the small print on some of these did say right turns were allowed between certain hours. But how could anyone unused to Sydney traffic risk trying to drive and read that fine print? As a result, our visitors had to proceed to a main intersection further on, then backtrack to our home.
GPS navigation can be a wonderful help—a lifesaver, in fact. But it is not infallible. There are some problems even that polite, electronic lady cannot solve, such as disappearing street signs! Nor did she tell our visitors the little trick many people in our area use to get from Windsor Road to where we live, which is to turn left instead of right, then turn right into a side street and right again. Then we can drive straight across that busy main road and head on our merry way, untroubled by those ‘No Right Turn’ signs!
Afterwards, one of our visitors told us how she has opted to rely on a different sort of GPS as she travels around. You see, those letters may stand for ‘Global Positioning System’—but they also stand for ‘God’s Perfect Strategy’! Now this latter navigational system will never let us down, because God, as the eternal, all-knowing, all-loving and all-wise Creator of the universe, is well aware of those missing street signs and ‘No Right Turns’ in our lives. God knows when we are lost and confused. And our God is not about to let us flounder or go off track, as we continue to look to the Lord in our lives and listen to his voice.
As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. Psalm 18:30-32
I’m thankful for both sorts of GPS available to me—but particularly the latter! And I hope I’m getting just that little bit better at going exactly where God’s voice tells me to go.
Jo-Anne Berthelsen's Blog 