GPS

The DVR changed the way I watch television. I watch more TV than before thanks to DVR. I set it and forget it. In the same vein, the GPS has changed the way I travel. I’m in D.C. this week for a conference, and I no longer have to write down or print out driving directions. I can just turn on my GPS, link up to some satellites, and plug in an address and it will direct me to there. I go many more places now because I know it will always direct me right back to home. I’ve heard people refer to the God or the Bible as a roadmap or GPS for our life. There are some similarities that I can see in that metaphor:

1) GPS knows where it’s taken you even when you have no clue how to get there.

Just type in an address and GPS will navigate you there. All you have to do is listen to and obey the directions it is giving you and you won’t go wrong. In life, if we listen and obey the voice of God, we can’t go wrong. There have been many times when my wife and I will look at each other and say “I hope this thing knows where it’s going because this doesn’t look right.” We start to doubt it. And don’t we do that with God? Our GPS has not been wrong yet. Any problems we have had were because we didn’t follow the directions.

2) GPS always knows where you are and has a link to the heavens.

A few seconds after you power up a GPS, it has linked with satellites and triangulates your exact location. And in a world with over 6.5 billion people, almighty God knows exactly where we are and what we’re doing.

While those are some similarities between God and a GPS, here’s where the metaphor breaks down.

1) 1) With a GPS, we have chosen the place we want to reach.

Often times in life, we want to choose the destination. Wealth, health, and fame. In doing that, we deny the life and plans that God has already chosen for us. Many times, if we knew the particular destination, we might not even go on the trip to begin with.

2) In some journeys, a GPS is not required.

Around my hometown and familiar locations, I don’t turn my GPS on or even have it with me in the car. I don’t need it. I know how to get to and from work. No problems getting to/from church. No questions about getting to the grocery store or my favorite restaurant. We can be exactly the same way with God. We only call on God when we don’t know the surroundings. Only call on Him when we’re lost and can’t find our way home. But we shouldn’t be that way. Like #2 above, we should be in constant contact with God in all aspects of life, not just the times we feel lost.