For those of you not familiar with GPS, it’s an acronym for Global Positioning System. I am a human GPS. Not of directions because as my family will tell you, I’m sometimes directionally challenged in urban environments. I guess that’s what I get for living in the rural mountains of Colorado. I need large mountain ranges to find my way around.
The GPS I’m referring to is my kids’ stuff. The feature normally click on in the morning rush to get out the door when we’re running late and it sounds something like this,
“Mom, where’s my homework I was working on last night?” To which I respond, “Honey, it’s still sitting on the table after I asked you to put it in your backpack last night.”
“Mom, where are my tennis shoes? I need them for gym class today.” My GPS answer is, “Sitting on the rug in the front hall.” “But Mom, I already looked there. Hey, look, they are there. Never mind, Mom, I found them.”
“Mom, where’s my uniform for my race tonight? I can’t find it.” My comeback is, “It’s still in the dryer from when I washed it after your race last night.”
And the list goes on and on. I find it interesting that even when I’ve been on business trips, my kids will call to ask where things are – one time, my then four year old, asked me to help him find his sippy cup when I was calling to wish him a good morning before preschool. I guess it didn’t matter that I was in a hotel room 200 miles away.
It’s as if they assume their dad isn’t capable of locating stuff. This is in fact untrue. If my husband can find a stranded hunter in the Colorado backcountry and haul them out safely in a blinding snowstorm as part of a search and rescue, I’m pretty sure he can locate a track uniform in our daughter’s bedroom. Although, depending on the state of our daughter’s room, this could be more dangerous than a rescue in the wilderness.
I realize my kids trust that I know where something is and will get it to them or help them find it. What’s cool is that God is the ultimate GPS for our lives. Although instead of Global Positioning System, I like to think of it as our God Positioning System. He knows where everything is and He is our beacon of hope even for those of us with directional challenges.
When we position our lives inline with God’s Positioning System, we will find the best path to take, even if it’s unconventional or not what we were anticipating. According to Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (NIV) God will always provide us the direction we need, if we ask, trust and wait on Him.
As I witnessed with my kids, when I don’t immediately provide an answer for locating missing stuff, they become frustrated and stressed. Oh, how, I see this same reaction in me when I’m pleading with God for an answer to prayer and I feel like He’s moving too slow. I doubt my prayers are being heard and I’m desperate for God to show up and provide the right way to go. When I slow down, take a breathe, and pull off the speedway of life, even for a few minutes to double check my direction with the heavenly GPS, things go smoother. I challenge you to consider pulling into one of life’s rest stops and checking in with God on your direction. Let me know what you find in the comments section below.