I remember back in the day when you needed to have a person in the passenger seat of your car for more than just putting their feet up on the glass. They actually did something other than complain about the radio station you picked.
It worked like this.
When you would want to travel from point A to point B and weren't familiar with the route, you needed help. The person on your right would open this book with pictures called a map and give you directions on how to arrive at the destination.
It was a glorious interaction between two intelligent people that would normally end up with one of you calling the other person an "idiot" or if you were really tired the phrase "I know you are but what am I?" would spew out. However you would usually get from point A to point B...eventually.
Well that wasn't good enough for us.
Now we have satellites that follow us all over the place and provide our Global Positioning at all times. We are able to translate this data into words through our GPS systems in our cars. If you are truly trashy, you probably chose a different voice to say the directions to you like Snoop Dogg or Hannah Montana because...well...who the heck knows. So now instead of yelling at the passenger next to you, you yell at a computer trapped in a box the size of a sardine can that taunts you in a Chuck Norris voice.
I have a one of those GPS deals...I chose a British voice...I named her Lilly. There, I said it.
However, Lilly is stupid. Let me tell you why.
I will plug in the address to my destination, hit "Go", and follow the directions blindly. I mean, it's a computer what could go wrong? However, from time to time I will miss a turn and have to take an alternate route that Lilly recalculates. Here is the kicker, 9 times out of 10 this route is faster than the first route she told me go on!
What in the flim flam is that all about?
You would think that Mr. Global Positioning System-man would be able to know that I would much rather get from Point A to Point B in 20 minutes rather than 45, but noooooooo. I get the route that takes me next to Aunt Bee's Lama farm and forces me to fill up with gas twice before I get there.
I about "placed" Lilly on Interstate 294 the other day to let her think about what she had done.
That got me to thinking though.
I really believe this is a similar scam that Satan uses. More people than not believe that there is a god, but everyone is searching for the way that will get them to him with least amount of work and the least amount of disruption to their current lives.
So Satan will drop a little doubt into our glass in the form of fear.
The fear usually comes in the form of this question: "What if I choose a path to follow God and later find a faster, easier route?" I mean, what if I can find a path to God that lets me keep sleeping with my boyfriend, doing drugs, and cheating on my taxes? Honestly, if I could find that option I'd be a lot "happier"...wouldn't I? I bet Oprah would even want to know about it!
So most either don't follow anything or they simply choose to follow everything in hopes that they can cover all their bases before they die. As if God will stand at the gates of Heaven with a clipboard checking off the buffet of religions you tried in order to get to Him.
As Christians we have this assurance found in John 14:6:
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one gets to the Father except through me."
I'm not sure you can find a much more direct route to God. When God incarnate tells you just follow Him and He will lead you to eternal life that seems pretty cut and dry. There is no need for us to check our spiritual GPS for redirection or for an updated route.
I wasn't great at geometry, but I do remember that the shortest distance between two points is still a straight line.
Bottom line is Jesus took out the guess work and destroyed any fear we may have about what happens next or what route is best. He was so serious that He died to prove it.
Now that's something I'll follow.
I have just as many frustrating moments with my GPS! Thanks for sharing--I don't feel alone anymore.
Kristin
Posted by: Kristinruther | August 12, 2010 at 07:14 AM