By: Dr. Synesio Lyra, Jr.
Any person behind the wheel of a car will occasionally discover to be driving in the wrong direction. In such situations, a U-turn is not only possible, but necessary as a corrective measure! By so doing one regains the proper perspective and recovers the right aim for that trip.
In life’s journey the same often occurs. A person can be unexpectedly distracted by varied, alluring signs, easily deviating into unplanned detours and possibly getting lost, instead of remaining in the main highway which can lead to one’s planned destination.
Obviously, it would be most foolish to persist in a certain trajectory if, by remaining there, the end of the line would be unknown, and the results of getting there could be injurious to the traveler. Not only would one be lost but it might also be nearly impossible to find the way back to certainty and safety.
An old proverb declares that “all roads lead to Rome.” This might have been true or not! From our own domicile we can utilize different, alternative pathways to reach a certain place known to us. But in other journeys we’d better pay attention to the map, carefully observe all road signs, measure our time, and do all that ensures our safe arrival at the planned location.
As you attempt to live life to the fullest, it’s imperative that you re-check your road map with regularity and realistically determine whether you are going forward or simply moving around in circles. Are you finding more obstacles than you had anticipated, or is your pathway free from any obstructions? Yet, even with barriers you can still reach your goal on the basis of persistence and determination!
Whatever new course of action may be called for, you still have the opportunity to change your mind in order to correct any situation, to remove any obstacle, to proceed with caution but also with dispatch in the pathway set before you.
It’s imperative to act wisely in any endeavor, to measure potential consequences in advance, to project the time and other factors necessary for travel in a certain terrain, and to reach the anticipated terminal. As Dr. George Sweeting put it, “single-mindedness is necessary for a pursuit of excellence.”
At the same time, it is equally paramount to acknowledge other options always before you, fearing no ill if the changes you make are for your own benefit. God Himself requires a change of mind when, by His grace, you can improve your condition and remain under His watch for the continual repairs necessary throughout life’s pilgrimage.
For a God-fearing person, the possibility of success is ever present, and it’s very real. “God loves you just the way you are,” John L. Mason reminds us, “but He loves you too much to leave you the way you are.”