One of my favorite weekend pastimes is riding the dirt roads. No destination. No time limit. Just exploring and taking in the scenery. It’s been a long while since I have taken the time to just ride, but my husband and I decided to load up the kids and hit the dirt roads. We grabbed a snack at the store and the boys took turns deciding whether we turned left or right. It was relaxing soaking in the scenery of our rural county without worrying about the regular time constraints and demands of life.

Somehow, we ended up on a dirt road neither of us had ever been down. There is something special about discovering a new road. I found myself slowing down to pay extra attention to the landmarks and scenery. I watched the road closer as I was unfamiliar with washouts and ditches. It was exciting to be able to add this new road to our driving route in the future.

Even more exhilarating was seeing where we came out. At first, the road seemed to never end. We watched the compass on my car switch from North to Northeast to East as the road wiggled and twisted. We started seeing roads that pulled off, but none of them were familiar. Finally, we recognized a road name. Then another and another. The light bulb came on and we started seeing how all of the dirt roads were connected. Eventually, we hit a very familiar paved road, and everything came together.

Often, we come to new roads in life. We aren’t sure how we got there, but suddenly here we are, face to face with a new direction. The last four months of my life have been spent blindly cruising down a new road of health issues. Just like we did today, I often find myself slowing down and soaking up every ounce of the blessing that we are experiencing. Even though it’s hard, there is so much of life’s scenery that I have unintentionally taken for granted and I don’t want to miss any of it, anymore. 

And then, there are many new obstacles I need to pay attention to: doctor’s visits, unexpected bursts of emotions, weariness, added responsibilities, and new challenges. Being ready and paying attention to these things has been so important. But what has been really neat is seeing where this new road is heading and knowing that somewhere it will connect to something familiar and everything will become interconnected and seamless like all of the other roads we have been down in the past. Somehow, God is going to weave this new road into our journey and use it for His glory and hopefully to help others find their way when nothing seems familiar. I’m reminded of that familiar passage in Romans 8:28 (NLT),

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.”

Knowing that God is in control of the drive helps me navigate this new road. Like Joshua 1:9 (NLT) says,

“This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

We just don’t know what God has in store and where we will end up. Let’s do our best to trust God on this new road and never, ever waste the drive.

Copyright © 2020 Christy Bass Adams, used with permission.

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