direction – destiny
from my quiet time this morning came this line, ‘our direction determines our destination.” i always know this but i sometimes act as if it doesn’t matter. i may even be on a parallel path sometimes but leading to the wrong ending place. i may feel good until i pass something that i’m not sure where it is. for instance, traveling to Baltimore to see my daughter google maps sends you on a highway marked 123, at a certain point 123 becomes a state highway that sends you into the inner city of D.C. assuming you come out the other end you end up in Baltimore but you have taken a
VERY circuitous route. when if they had only told you to stay on the road you were traveling and leave 123 behind. you are on a road that runs parallel for a long time and then suddenly you are not where you want to be.
in my talks with church planters sometimes i hear them talk about their destinies but i often find them on the wrong path to that destiny. things like the community you plant in, the ways you do outreach, the way you communicate with people, the way people are treated when they come into your building, etc, etc.
church planters often think if i just do a like joe does a i will be a success. a’s path may lead to Orange County, California and you don’t won’t to go there. or it may lead to Illinois, and you aren’t going there either. you have to be able to interpret your community and the path you are following. the more you are able to do that the more successful you will be. but don’t tell me about having 1000 in worship unless you are willing to follow the path to get there.
one of my favorite verses, “man makes his plan, but God directs his steps.” make sure following the directions of the Savior when the plans are completed. make sure they’re not parallel paths that find you in a different location.
