Through the DETOUR

Change..It's easy to embrace when it's longed for but not so much when it's unexpected. Take me for instance, in the past I never really liked change. Well I take that back when I had control over it sure,when I could expect it, seek it-absolutely. I'm an adventurer, spontaneous, go with the flow kind of girl. But when I would get used to something in the past, finally get comfortable & then unwanted, unexpected change would hit me like a semi I'd lose all sense of security.At least that's how the old me felt. You see change is fickle, About as fickle as an Elementary school sweetheart. One day for you, and the next day against you! That's why I've learned you can't depend on it but instead on the God who's in control through it.

Very few people embrace unexpected change. We usually like what we can anticipate,what we can see coming.We like to know what’s up ahead so we can prepare for it. Being able to anticipate what’s up around the bend brings security but security in what?Unfortunately, life doesn’t always afford the luxury of a heads-up.

Change can come like an unexpected detour.  The other day I was driving to one of my favorite stores...The dollar store. Stuff for just a dollar? Umm yes please!....awesome. Needless to say I travel to the dollar store...a lot... so the road to get there is familiar and typically unchanging. So when I neared and was greeted by a rare long line of cars waiting I did my best to peer ahead to discover the cause. Don't act like you've never done that in traffic...moved your car a little to the right or left to see what's causing the unsolicited pile up as if somehow determining the origin will make the line of impatient drivers magically start to move or somehow make the wait easier to tolerate.Mmhmm.

As I looked the culprit of this change became so obvious it was nearly blinding-A huge,bright orange DETOUR sign. I don't know many people that are overjoyed to come across one of those bad boys but there it was staring back at me as if knowing the power it had over me. So rebellion kicked in and I immediately turned into a neighborhood thinking I'd outwit the orange monstrosity and shortcut the detour.But life rarely goes as we plan,especially when we take it into our own hands. As i turned the corner the victory smile forming on my face died a painful death as yet another orange eyesore came into view.Yep, a detour from a detour. I ended up having to go down three different roads and pull two u turns before ending up waiting in the line I was trying so desperately to avoid in the first place. Nice.

As I sat in the inconvenient line of cars the thought of forsaking my trip to the dollar store crossed my mind, convincing myself anything worth a dollar wasn't worth it.I thought about the U turns and suddenly found myself laughing out loud-much like I felt God was in that moment(in a caring,fatherly sort of way of course). If I would have just accepted the simple change and followed the sign I may not have reached my destination as quickly as normal but I would have reached it none the less and it would have been a whole lot quicker and less painful then the "shortcut" I attempted!

 When a detour is posted, it usually signifies something is under construction; being built, removed, or repaired. In life, change often signifies the same thing, only we are the ones under construction and God's the builder.  In this instance the detour was guided by visible orange signs directing every turn, but then there are also those one-sign routes where even the destination might not be clear.

Abraham received the one-sign detour. Not a lot of details about the trip, or the final destination. His journey was spent seeking God’s desire, and listening to His directions.

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. Heb 11:8

In Abraham’s life God was reconstructing something. He was removing him from his old life, and building a new nation through him! God was using a detour in his life to restore a relationship between God and mankind.Wow.Unlikely me, Abraham didn’t have the luxury of orange signs at every turn. There were days he’d cry out to God and heard nothing, and other days he’d make a turn and it’d be the wrong one. How many times have we felt this way? I can say through my health problems I've felt that way A LOT. However, over time, in spite of the silence of God’s voice, the lack of signs, or the mistakes Abraham made, God built a friendship between the two of them. The Bible says that even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping-believing that God had a plan.He had an un-waivering faith, not based on what he could see around him but on the God he knew was in control.

When life brings a detour, chances are God is working in our lives just as He was in Abraham’s life. He’s strengthening His relationship with us through the new route we're on. When God allows a detour, He reinforces our prayer life, and increases our faith, and restores our hope and belief. Whether the road is clearly marked or just a one-sign wonder, we can be confident that God is there.
I encourage you to ask God what is under construction in your life. Ask Him if He is:

• Building something new?
• Removing debris?
• Bringing restoration?

Understanding that change truly has a purpose in our lives will bring peace and rest, and I don't know about you but those are two things I'm always happy to have. And once we do it increases our trust in God. It gives us a hope to hold onto so we, too, can be have faith like Abraham that even when there is no reason for hope, we keep hoping and believing until we make it through the detour!

The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. Prov. 16:9