By Rev. Pete Hyde
The morning broke with anticipation. A destination had been selected for the day’s outing. The directions were reviewed. The last swallow of coffee was finished, and off we went. The morning sun splashed through the trees, casting long shadows onto the highway. As we turned off the highway onto a side road, we noted the odometer reading so we could follow the directions to the tenth of a mile. After about a mile, the sign read “pavement ends,” which it did rather abruptly. It was not a bad gravel road, but it had been a while since a road grader had visited this remote area.
The odometer showed it was time for another turn. The road sign was tucked behind the overgrowth on the shoulder, so we had to back up to make the turn. The turn was steep and rutted. Our little SUV spun its tires a moment, caught its grip and inched us up the narrow road that made a tunnel through the forest. After about a hundred yards, the road smoothed out. We crept our way through the woods, coming to fork after fork in the road. We wondered each time if our choice was right. In a moment of anxiety, we stopped to look at each other and the written directions once again. The GPS had long ago lost our position. The line read, “This road is for high clearance vehicles only.” Well, that made us think twice. We really wanted to get to the destination. The directions offered another route. We turned around on the narrow road and headed back.
It took us about a half hour to reach the alternate route. We had again lost the pavement and were creeping through another forest tunnel. This time, the road was a little wider and in a little better condition, but was completely unmarked. We glanced at each other with unsure looks. “Do we really want to continue to pursue this destination?” “Let’s go a little farther.” “Really?”
We rounded a curve and the road widened a little and began to slope down. At the bottom, muddy water was standing in two huge puddles across the entire road. A little farther down as an old Airstream trailer just off the road, cars in all states of disrepair and an old shed covered with a blue plastic tarp. We rolled to a quiet stop about 50 yards from the muddy puddles. An unspoken tension filled the car. The question arose, “Do we really want to pursue this destination?” “Maybe we weren’t meant to go there after all.” We turned around, retraced our path to the main road, then back to the highway. Another destination was selected and we had a wonderful day.
Many times we select destinations, goals, dreams, wishes, directions and outcomes. Sometimes we do this prayerfully and other times we just head off because of some book we read or some notion that “this ought to work.” We get so focused on accomplishing the goal, making this a success, that it becomes the work of our hands, and we ignore or choose not to see and accept the obstacles placed in our way. We try to find ways around them or try to explain them away when in reality we may not have been meant to go in this direction at all. Perhaps God has another goal, a different direction, alternate dreams, bigger outcomes, greater dreams for us if we will pray, discern, and yield to His will and follow His direction.
Perhaps our stubbornness to accomplish the goals, fulfill the dreams and make the successes “we” set for ourselves may not be God’s plan at all. It is not until the obstacles seem insurmountable that we turn around, count our losses and head back to God’s main road to go in a different direction – God’s direction – to accomplish God’s will and goals.
Consider the obstacles you face today. Are those being placed there by God to get you back on the proper track with His will and direction for your life? Stop for a moment today, open your heart in prayer, and listen for the voice of God. Be open to the nudging of His Spirit to go in a different direction – His direction.
Rev. Pete Hyde serves as chaplain with the South Walton Fire District.
