When I first moved to Minneapolis, anytime I drove my car I never knew where I was or where I was going. I had to depend completely on the navigation system to get absolutely anywhere. Seriously, I couldn’t even get to the grocery store without it.
I felt pretty stupid around my husband and all the other Minneapolis natives who knew their way around everywhere they went. But really, if you’re new, you’re new, right? How could I know where to go if I’d never been there before?
Well, if you think about it, it’s the same way with our lives. I mean, we can make plans to head in a certain direction, but none of us have been to the future. We might know which direction we want to go, but we don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, because we’ve never been there before.
But there’s good news…
God is even better than a GPS at getting you where you’re supposed to be. He’s been to your future and back! And he’s happy to share what He knows about it with you. John 16:13 says He’ll guide you into all truth and even show you what is to come.
Think about the times you’ve used a GPS and you’ve taken a wrong turn. The helpful voice that’s guiding you will say something like, “I’m recalculating your route.” And it’ll tell you to turn around or take a different way to get where you wanted to go.
God does that too, only better. I’ve used a navigation system that got hopelessly confused after I went the wrong way—and then I was lost for sure! Sometimes it didn’t know a road was closed and had no other suggestions for alternate routes to my destination. A GPS can’t see the “road closed” sign!
That never happens with God. He’s never confused. He knows exactly how to get you to your destination or get you back on course. In Psalm 32:8 He says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go.” And He’s completely willing to do it when you ask for His help.
There have been times in my life, both while driving and just while living, that’s I’ve said, “Lord, which way should I go?” When I ask Him, He helps me make the right decisions. I’ll just get a “knowing” in my spirit: go this way, or do that instead.
It’s not always easy. Be warned: very often there is a lot of pressure in the midst of making a decision, because the enemy fights you so hard when you’re headed in the direction God wants you to go.
But the key is to ask. So many times we try things on our own, when God is standing by, just waiting to help. When we ask and let Him help, He’s right there to guide and direct.
Asking and obeying God’s direction is so worth it! There’s just nothing better than being in the center of God’s will for your life. When you seek out and follow God’s best plan for your life, things will turn out “exceedingly abundantly above all that you can ask or think”. (Eph. 3:20)
Karen Jensen Salisbury has been in ministry for almost 30 years, and a writer for almost 40. She and her first husband, Brent, traveled as itinerant ministers, and also pioneered two churches in the Northwest.
In 1997, upon Brent's unexpected death, she became Senior Pastor of their church in Boise, Idaho. She raised their sons, Josh and Ryan, through their teenage years into young men on fire for God.
Karen was an instructor at Rhema Bible Training College in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma from 2005 to 2014. In March of 2014 she married businessman Bob Salisbury, and they live in Minneapolis. Now in addition to writing books, Karen travels across the U.S. and overseas, sharing what she has learned about the faithfulness of God through good times and bad.
Her teachings and writings have influenced the lives of hundreds of thousands of people all over the world. Her humor, her never-give-up attitude, her love for God and her strong stand on His Word will bless and inspire you.