Shortcuts

It is my way of life to find shortcuts...shortcuts from traffic, from duties, from following directions, etc. I had to go pick my car up from the shop during 5:00 traffic and instead of going the direct route, I zigzagged through neighborhoods finding shortcuts and finally found myself on the feeder road of Beltway 8, heading toward I-10. I looked up at the spaghetti bowl and watched as cars drove non stop bumper to bumper on their designated paths....and thought....there are cars moving in every direction but there is order. A specific direction was designated for each road...and as long as folks were adhering to that direction and staying within the bounds of speed...then travels were smooth...not necessarily fast but smooth. But once you were on one of those overpasses, you were committed...no shortcuts....no way out....at lease for a long while.

I always like to have an "out"...I guess part of that comes from not wanting to get stuck into doing something or being somewhere that I might not be comfortable with or in. Same thing with shortcuts...I want the freedom to go at my own pace and not have to follow a path that has no outs. . I also just like the adventure od seeking new territory and the risk of not knowing for sure what the outcome is going to be. But I was thinking about shortcuts in regard to my relationship with God. There are none. It is a direct approach....Oh sure, I can pray at my own will, and on my own timing, I can include Him in on what I want Him to be privy to in my life, and leave him out when it is not convenient. I can do what I want to in my eyes without regard to His input and I can choose to distance myself from Him when I am not lined up with what I know to be right....but all of those things do not change the fact that a relationship with God is a direct approach. God is simple and straight and pure...no trick questions...no detours...no about face turns. God loves us and calls us to be in fellowship with him....Period. And there are no exceptions to his simplicity in His call.

Just like that spaghetti bowl that overpasses I-10...each of our roads has a defined direction...if I am on the same page with God and am lined up according to what he has planned for my live....then I can approach my relationship with God directly. I won't be listening to whispers that I know are not right. I will be staying the course and following as best I can the direction God has called me to follow instead of a direction of my own which might be 'dead' wrong... I will have averted the thought of taunting shortcuts....because I know I am on the right road, going the right way, with the right intentions. As long as I am consciously traveling on God's HIGH WAY with Him...there is no need for shortcuts.

The way to God is not through a jumbled maze.....but merely through the belief in the life and death and resurrection of His son Jesus. If we believe that Christ was sent to save us... from the penalty of death for the sins we have committed, are committing and will commit... and that through His death for those sins of ours not HIS, we will have eternal life with Him, then we have been granted immediate access to His High Way. And whatever direction we are traveling, if we have allowed God to travel with us, then we can be assured that He knows the way....for He is the Way. If there are traffic jams...he'll be with us...if there are detours ...he has his reasons...if there are roadblocks...then we must trust his timing...and if travels are smooth fro a time...then be grateful..

Isaiah 55:8
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD.

Shortcuts...I will always be a sucker for...but when it comes to God...His way is simple and straightforward...and there is no need to search for a better way. His way is best. But if you are like me and are inclined to find a shorter route....then...consider the route that we take when we try to do things our own way... so often is not only an indirect path...but an inefficient way to do things. Sometimes the direct route requires patience, a patience that God uses for His purpose. Oh, how I want to be committed ....really sold out to be on your overpass....with no possibility of a shortcut in sight... Oh, how confident I would be in my travels if only I would choose to go in your designated direction....and trust you.

Dear Lord, I ask that you guard me from trying to manipulate a shortcut in order to get my way. Teach me to be patient as I consciously choose to follow your path. Amen

Praise God wherever you are and whatever situation He has allowed you to be in . . . His glory will shine through