Maps

We live in a world of GPS (Global Position Satellite) that can track where we are and take us to where we want to go - most of the time.  One of the problems I've found with GPS is that you don't necessarily know where you're actually going or where you actually are because you tend to rely on the little voice in the box to direct you one turn after the other, which works great - when it works.

I asked Siri on my iPhone, the other day, to take me to an address on a street named Black Jack.  Siri promptly took me to a street named Blackjack in an entirely different town, in the opposite direction from the place I actually wanted to go.  My driving experience was doubled on a day when my time was already compressed.

As cumbersome as maps can be, the thing that makes them more dependable is that you can actually see where you are, where you're going and everything in between; as well as everything all around.  You get to see, from the start to the finish, the totality of you journey.  The problem with that, as comforting as it may be to be sure of where you are going and what lies in between is that the mapping out of a journey depends on your skill, which may not be adequate for the journey.

In the journey of life, most would prefer a map over a GPS so we can see what's up ahead at every turn, what we can expect, how things are going and how they we'll be developing along the way.  Unfortunately, life doesn't come with such a map.  We are not privy to everything that's up ahead: "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow..." (Js 4:14).

We know death is up ahead somewhere for "...people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment" (Heb 9:27), but we don't know what's in between and it's only in Christ we know what comes up afterward as the apostle assures, "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 Jn 5:13).

We can have eternal security, we can know where we are going in Christ, but even in Christ, we are not privy to what may be along the road for he does not lay out a map to detail the journey.  Jesus simply says, "Come, follow me" (Mt 4:19).  We know heaven is at the journey's end but not what may be in between - for that, we must trust in Him.

I use GPS because, as imperfect as it may be, it is measurably better than my mapping skills.  It gets me there faster and easier and more accurately than I would with a map spread out on the car seat beside me.  In life, I follow Jesus because he is always faithful, always true, always dependable.  I know that I can trust him to get me to my final destination regardless of the road conditions or the challenges of the journey.

I don't need a map to plot out a course when I can simply follow the Master.  Jus' Say'n.