A couple of weeks ago I made a post about the prodigal son, and how the Father loves us and wants us to come home. (If you missed that one, you can click here, or go to the blog page.) But when I think about that story, I have to wonder… Did the son know the way home? Exactly how far away had he gotten? Did he wander around for a while until he found a landmark? Did he ask for directions? Sometimes running and going looks fun. We rush headlong 
into whatever we think will fill us up and make us happy. We run to it and never look back. We never watch for landmarks or to see where we are going. We just GO.
And then we get there.
It may take a while, but eventually, we come to the realization that this IS NOT what we thought it was going to be. This is NOT “as seen on TV.” This is NOT ANY FUN, so why am I here?
Have you ever seen a toddler that is hiding from his mother in the store? It’s all fun at first. He is ducking behind racks of clothes or running around the back end of the cereal aisle. He is all smiles! He’s laughing and giggling, and it’s even funnier if he thinks Mama can’t find him. She may be panicking, but that just adds to his fun. The tables turn, however, when he loses sight of his Mama and realizes he doesn’t know where he is. He’s disoriented. He can’t see where his Mama is, has no idea which way he came or how to get back to that place of safety at her side. That’s when the tears start. He’s lost.
I have been in that place more times than I would like to admit. I have been in situations where the reality of what is going on finally hits me, and I look around and realize, “Man. I am SO LOST.” Have you ever been so lost that you had no idea how you were going to get back home? When I was a teenager (back before cell phones, GPS and navigation systems – I know, I’m telling my age!) driving out into the world was a bigger deal than it is now. At least it was for me. One 
time I decided I was going to go visit a friend that lived way up in Indiana. Now y’all, I come from a small town in southern Kentucky, so that trip was a bit of a haul. I did alright getting there, but on the way back I got lost in Indianapolis. One thing that I knew though, (because my hometown was right off the interstate) that if I could ever find my way back to I-65 south, I could get home. Just find the road home. These days, thanks to technology, navigation is not even a real stressor. I just pull up the app on my phone and tell it to take me to the house. Done.
But spiritually? Well, that’s a different story. There have been mornings when I opened my eyes, took stock of my situation and wondered, “What on Earth am I doing?” What is even worse is when the enemy adds insult to injury and whispers, “And girl, you KNEW better. Look at you now. There is no way you can find your way out of this. Cry all you want. You are LOST. And there is nobody to help. Not only are you lost and hurt, but you did it to yourself. You only have yourself to blame.”
Well, it’s a lie y’all.
It’s all a lie.
Here is the TRUTH: He is the God who leaves the 99 to find the one.
THAT is the TRUTH.
He is like the mother looking for her child in the store. He hears you crying, gets down to hold your red, tear-stained, cheeks in his hands, and says, “I am right here. I am with you. You are safe.”
In the wilderness, the children of Israel followed the Ark of the Covenant. It went before them far enough that they always could see it ahead and know they were on the right path. The presence of the Lord was with them during the day (in the form of a cloud) and at night (in the form of fire – Exodus 13:21-22). When they came to a fork in the….uh….desert, they didn’t have to wonder which way to go. He was leading them.
Now, because of the sacrifice of Jesus, if you are a Christian, you have INTERNAL NAVIGATION! Waaaaaay better than GPS! If you are willing to listen, you can get navigation direct from the Holy Spirit. That doesn’t mean that you won’t ever make a wrong turn. But it DOES mean that when you do, something in your spirit says, “Get back on the path! Recalculating!”
Isaiah 30:21 NIV Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
So if you are lost, or just OUT THERE, and you desperately want to find the way home to your Father’s house, don’t panic. Stop and ask directions. The Holy Spirit will lead you. Turn off the two-lane and look for the little road. Jesus says (John 14:6), “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” It’s a small gate, but the road is right there. It’s narrow, but it will take you where you need to go. It will not only take you home to recoup and heal if you’ve been beaten down, but it will also take you to the BIG plans and the future that God has for you.
Matthew 7:13-14 NIV Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Please feel free to share our posts and our blog site, and leave comments below! We are so glad you are here!