Looking Back to See Ahead

Fog!

​Of all the weather conditions to drive in, I fear driving in fog the most.  There’s something unnerving about driving when your visibility is really restricted.  As visibility diminishes, concentration seems to automatically intensify.  Your fingers tighten their grip on the steering wheel.  Chatty conversation gets put on hold.  Your focus narrows to the roadway that is just in front of your bumper.  Not being able to see landmarks, or even the horizon, makes it easy to lose your bearings.  The driving is intense.  Prayer tends to be intense as well.  

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​There was a 15 year period when we lived in a mountain community, and commuted to work in the valley below.  The trip was 22 minutes each way.  This included a 3,500' change in elevation.  Portions of the road were perched on the side of the mountain – framed with guardrails.   Each trip was a constant zig and zag.  On a clear day, driving “the mountain” required attention.  But, when driving in heavy fog at night, the stakes seem to ratchet up a few notches.  

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​Even though I had driven this road hundreds of times, and knew every turn, my confidence got tested in the fog.   As I drove, my eyes were glued to two lines.  The yellow was on the left.  The white was on the right.   My task was to stay between them.  To get any advantage that I could, I replayed the memory of the twists and turns as I drove.  All was well - until I missed a cue.  Suddenly, I wasn’t where I thought I was.  It was disconcerting.  Was the next turn to the right or to the left?  Then, I would recognize a landmark and the tension would immediately reduce.   Even though I was still in the fog, the memory restored my bearings.  It renewed hope.  I knew where I was at.  

From time to time, foggy conditions seem to enshroud my spiritual journey, as well.   ​

In the 1990s, God used the study Experiencing God: Knowing and Doing the Will of God to help me see how God was at work in my life.  Several concepts from this study have helped me significantly over the years.  One was the usage of spiritual markers in our lives.  In Joshua 4: 1-9, God had just performed a miracle in stopping up the Jordan River, so that the children of Israel could pass through it.  He then commanded them to mark the spot with a pile of stones.  God told them to use these stones as a memorial (v. 6) to tell future generations of what God had done.   The marker was to help jog their spiritual memory – to remind them of the work God did.  
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​There was an exercise in Experiencing God which had you list the spiritual markers in your life.  These were times when it was clearly evident that God was at work in your life.  I made a list.  Then, I began to add to it every year or so.  Interestingly, the more I looked for God at work, the more spiritual landmarks I began to see.  What I discovered was that the exercise of recording spiritual markers helped me keep my bearings when circumstances seemed hazy or unclear.  If I had trusted God before, and he was faithful, then I can trust him now.

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Starting in 2016, God used Life Purpose Discovery coaching to affect my life in a similar way.  One component for discovering life purpose is to look at the journey I had been on to date.  In doing so, I was reminded that God had been weaving his purposes all throughout the entire tapestry of my life.  I began to see patterns and themes emerge. My life wasn’t as haphazard as I thought it was.  By identifying my spiritual landmarks, I had points of reference.  I had memories of God being God in my life. ​

​I have to admit.  I don’t like it when there is fog in my life.  I want to see the big picture.  I want clarity.  It makes my journey more comfortable.  But, God wants me to trust him in my journey.  My discomfort drives me to rely on him. My wife often quotes Beth Moore when she prays, "Lord, give me enough light for the step I am on."  My prayer is a slight variation of this, “Lord, help me to see just enough to stay between the lines.”

Part of the reason for this blog is for me to record the spiritual markers in my life.  Keeping a written record of “God events” encourages me to trust God even more.  I hope this blog encourages you to reflect on, and even write down, the spiritual markers in your own journey.   
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Be reminded of what God has been doing in your life up to this point.  When the way ahead isn’t particularly clear, jog your memory – look back.  Trust that he will continue to work in and through you according to his plan and purposes.  

Next Time: The Gift of Perspective

Photo Credits:
Top: Image by Epic Images from Pixabay 
Middle: Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay 
Bottom: Image by Mike Goad from Pixabay