A Flawless GPS

I could count my husband’s flaws on one hand and still have a couple of fingers left over. Sadly, the same cannot be said for me. Does this mean Chris is perfect? Of course not. He’s human. It’s rare that we argue about anything, but (full disclosure) when we do, it’s usually my fault. But not always.

At the risk of stereotyping, what is it with men and directions? It’s not that Chris won’t ask for them. These days, we just plug an address into the vehicle’s GPS and merely follow along. The catch is, we have to trust the technology.

We were driving up I-65 the other day on our way to run errands. We had a tight schedule, and we were trying to figure out the best strategy to get everything done in record time. First stop was to pick up our car which had been in the shop for three weeks. We’d never actually been to the dealership, since it had been towed (that’s a whole story in itself), so Chris had asked me to plug in the address before we left the house. Fifteen minutes into our drive, we were directed to exit the freeway.

“This is ridiculous.” He pointed at the map displayed in the dash. “Why is it telling me to exit here?”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s taking us on the back roads.” Seemed plausible to me. Since I’m directionally challenged, I don’t disregard the map. “You did tell me you don’t know where the place is.”

“I know the general area,” he said. “I just want to make sure I don’t take the wrong exit. Can you put the address in your phone and check the directions?”

Within seconds, I had another map up on my phone that confirmed the vehicle’s GPS. “It says the same thing. Maybe you should follow them.”

“I’ve been on this drive a hundred times, and that’s not the right exit. We’re still miles from Franklin. I’m ignoring it. It’ll re-route us once we pass that exit.”

Although Chris generally has a great sense of direction (aside from one late night in Cais Cais, Portugal), frustration got the better of me. “Why do you have me set up the GPS if you’re just going to ignore it, anyway?”

Not that it mattered much, because he’d just passed the exit we were directed to take. The ETA time jumped from thirty minutes to fifty, which I generously pointed out to him.

“I have a brain,” he said. “and I know how to use it. There’s no way it’ll take fifty minutes.”

“Well,” I reasoned, “maybe there’s an accident ahead.” Chris didn’t respond, which is why we rarely argue. He has much better control over his mouth than I do. Still, I grumbled at him for the next mile.

He threw me a cocky grin. “Are you going to continue with this the entire drive?”

“Maybe.”

“When you see I’m right, I expect an apology.” He smiled and nudged me, so I wouldn’t take offense.

I was just getting ready to offer up that apology when traffic suddenly slowed, and brake lights lit up the horizon. Seemed the map app had information we weren’t privy to and trusting in the technology would’ve been wise.

He sighed. “Go ahead and say it.”

I laughed. “I told you so.”

But isn’t that how we often are with God? We say we’re surrendered to Him, yet we’re apt to disregard indicators that we’re moving in a wrong direction. The still, small voice, or a nudge from the Holy Spirit convicting us of a decision we’ve made without consulting the One who made us. I know I’ve been guilty of it.

We are flawed humans, and until we reach eternity, we will always hold onto a little of that Old Man rebellion. I don’t know how many times I’ve surrendered my entire life to God only to hold back when my trust wavers a little. It’s like asking for directions then going it alone after all. The only difference is that a GPS app is not 100% accurate at all times. But God never leads us in the wrong direction and often leads us in a way that reveals abundant blessings we’d otherwise never know. The Holy Spirit is our flawless GPS. We need only follow His lead.

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