Monday, December 29, 2014

If only

     2014 is quickly coming to an end. Several days from now everyone gets a fresh start, a clean slate. Everyone contemplates the happenings of the last year and plays the "what if" game . I've often heard the phrase , " I wish I had known then what I know now" or " If I could just go back and do that over...". More than once I have given deep thought to each of those popular phrases and asked myself if either apply to me personally. The answer I always come to is no.
     IF I could go back and do anything over, even with the knowledge of what I know now that I didn't know then, I would do nothing differently. I honestly can't think of one single thing that I would change. Every situation, every person God has led into my life, every choice I have ever made has created who I am and what my life looks like right now this very minute and I am very okay with that.
     Romans 8:28 reads, And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. God allows us free will. We freely make choices and every choice comes with a consequence attached, sometimes good, sometimes not so much. God has a plan for each and every one of us and more often than not, we mess it up royally by not being obedient to HIM . The consequence for disobedience is a detour.
     I am horrible at following directions, the driving kind. Oh the hours I have spent driving in circles ! More than once I have gotten on I40 going the opposite way I needed to and had to drive an extra 30 minutes to circle back around. In 2012 I somehow missed an exit driving home from Myrtle beach and it took an extra 2 hours or more to get home. My problem is that I don't realize that I am even going the wrong way until I am miles into the disaster. By the time I do, I would rather just find an alternate route rather than take the time to circle back. I somehow always end up where I am supposed to be, it just takes me longer to get there. After the 2012 fiasco, my next birthday present was a GPS.
     Life pretty much works the same way. We stray from the path that God sets before us. Sometimes we don't even realize that we are going the wrong way. All of the sudden we are miles away from where we are supposed to be and God throws a big orange warning sign right smack in the middle of the road. We realize that we are lost and we are forced to ask for directions. God , just like a GPS, will help us find a road to get us to where we need to be. It might just take us longer to arrive at our destination than we expected.
     I never wish I could go back and do anything over differently. I never wish that I could have known then what I know now. I have no regrets. I trust that big ole GPS in the heavens to lead me to where I am supposed to be and if I must travel the scenic route to get there every once in a while, then I will just sit back and enjoy the ride.
     Happy New Year my friends. My wish for you in 2015 is that each of you will learn to appreciate the detours and that you arrive at your destinations safely even if you are a tad late.