Directed Paths

Well, fall started last week, and I am trying to enjoy it to its fullest.  Tina and I are in a cabin in North Carolina.  We hope to enjoy the beginning of the fall colors as we ride around the area. And I do hope that the weather will allow for at least one round of mountain golf. 

            I have always enjoyed the mountains. When we were younger, Tina and I had thought that we might eventually retire in north Georgia.  The Lord has a way of changing our plans. In fact, I’ve heard it said, “Man plans, and God laughs.”  Solomon wrote in Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”

            So, does that mean that one should never plan? Should we simply go merrily along, knowing that God will take us to where He wants us? I do not think that is the right way to live. In fact, James wrote, “You ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’”  He was not saying that any and all planning is wrong. It is simply that we are to submit to the Lord’s direction, and then to follow Him.

            Through the years Tina and I have sought to follow the Lord. He led us to school and our first church in south Louisiana, only a year or so after we married. We made our way back to Georgia, but then spent 14 years in the upper Midwest.  We returned to Georgia in 2005, and have found what we hope to be our final home in Shellman Bluff.

            It’s funny. I would have thought I would have retired by the age of 67 from fulltime ministry. And I would have thought that retirement would have been in the mountains of North Georgia. And I would have thought a whole bunch of other things that have not turned out the way I would have thought.

            And through it all, God has been good. He has directed our paths, just as He has promised. And we have sought to trust in Him with our whole hearts, not leaning on our own understanding. And as I said, He has directed our paths.  What a mighty God we serve!