Early in the age of exploration, navigating the vast seas was no easy task! Without modern radar and satellites, captains were left with only the stars, the sun and a few crude instruments. As time went on, maps were created, although they often were inaccurate. Most sailors came to rely on landmarks at the beginning of their journey. For instance, if they sailed due east from the Canary Islands, they reached Africa. If they sailed due west, they reached the Bahamas. This type of navigating came to be known as “dead reckoning.”
I wonder how many Christians navigate their lives by dead reckoning. They start off from the point of salvation and think they are heading in a certain direction where God wants them to go, but somewhere along the way, their compass breaks, the winds and waves shove their ship off course or perhaps they get distracted by the beauty of some passing shore and stop for a rest. Either way, they are now wandering all over the seas in search of the course they should be taking.
I believe God does have a unique path for each of us. A path and purpose He created for us from before the world began. He has specific things He needs us to do which require our unique blend of talents, desires and gifts.
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart (Jeremiah 1:5 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 (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).
But how do we find that plan? Maybe your ship is foundering among the vast seas and you have no idea where you are going or where you should be going. You truly want to fulfill God’s plan for you, but you have a broken compass and the stars aren’t shining and all you see ahead of you is endless water! But did you know God gave you a compass that would never break? He also gave you a waterproof map. It is His Word. And in it, we find specific directions on how to discover His will:
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:2 NIV).
Okay . . . so if you’ll be able to test and approve God’s will for you, then let’s assume you will know God’s will for you, right? So how do you come to know it? By allowing God to transform your mind. Did you notice that His will for you will be good, pleasing and perfect? Do you know why it will be good, pleasing and perfect? Because you were made precisely for it!
For example, God made me a writer. But I never knew that until I gave my life to Him and truly allowed Him to change my heart and mind. (Took years, and still is a work in progress, by the way.)
For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him (Philippians 2:13 NLT).
So, get out that map, get out that compass, allow God to transform your mind and show you how to plot your course.
MaryLu Tyndall