Lost In Ireland

We had been warned..."Don't hit the fluffy white things." I guess he thought the three girls renting his car had never seen sheep before. It was obvious he wasn't confident that we could handle the drive along the coast as he clasped the keys a few minutes longer than necessary handing them to us. 

But we were determined. Neither driving on the opposite side of the car, nor sleet, nor cliffs, nor sheep were going to keep us from our adventure in Ireland! 

So off we went down the road. Now, trying to save money — as the frugal travelers we were— we opted not to get GPS. What could go wrong? (Yeah, I know...hindsight.) But there we were swerving down the cliffs in southern Ireland, on the opposite side of the road, loving life! 

The only problem was that none of us were very good map readers. Come on now, we live in the age of Google maps! You never really have to know where you're going because there's always someone to tell you. 

You know how in life, people are always asking those questions about the road you're on? ,

"Where are you going?"

"What are you doing?"

"Where are you headed?" 

"Where are you going to be in 10 years?" 

Aaaaaahhh!! Map overload!! 

And while all those questions are good and valid and we'll address some of them in later blogs, the truth is, that even Google maps only gives you one direction at a time. 

And in my life, I have found that God does the same. Whenever I get anxious about where I am supposed to be, or start asking, "What's next, what's next, what's next???" God always seems to do like Siri and repeat the last direction he gave me, "Take next exit."

Yes, but what is after that??

"Take next exit."

I will! But what will happen after that?

"Take next exit." 

Aaarg. 

But he knows my propensity to get ahead and lose site of where He has me. To miss the joy of the journey. 

When we were traveling through Ireland, one day we got off on several roads that we didn't mean to go down. Meaning we were lost...though the driver, who will remain nameless, would never admit it. But in a way she was right. The truth is we were never really completely lost.

We knew we were headed in the right direction, we just went down some unexpected roads. Some were crazy and a little scary, overlooking cliffs. While others were full of the most delightful surprises, like a city's Centennial Celebration where we stopped and joined in on some Irish dances and tasted delicious authentic Irish street food! 

Sometimes life is a surprise. And unless you decide to make the most of the road God has you on, you will miss the excitement and joy of the journey. It's the detours that are often the best part.  

So the next time you ask, "What's next?" and God replies, "Stay on this road for 10 more miles," just go ahead, get your camera out and look for the adventure. There's always something you can learn or see on any road He has you on. He knows where you are and where he is taking you. ...And who knows, maybe you'll learn an Irish jig along the way. 

Are you like me? Do you have a tendency to ask, "What's next?'... a lot? :)