What's Your Global Position?

A man walks into a gas station and asks for directions...

Okay, okay... that must be the beginning of a bad joke but I after this past week's experience I couldn't help but open with it.

You see, my best friend asked me to both officiate and be the best man in his wedding which was on St Patrick's Day. Chuck (who has guest posted for me) and I have been friends for well over 30 years. We have built and destroyed our fair share of small projects and have a great appreciation for cool technology.

When Chuck moved here from Arizona he journeyed with his very own brand new GPS. I can't lie, I wanted one. But, because I normally have a pretty good sense of direction and have learned to use Google Maps I had yet to justify the cost. Well, this past Christmas my wife bought me my very own GPS. Now, Chuck and I were both able to navigate to Florida for the wedding with ease!

Like Chuck, I have been most amazed with how quickly I have gotten used to relying on this simple little device. For me, the past few months have created a new dependency on my GPS.

What creates our dependency on these little devices?

- Short notice, convenient directions

- Reliability

- Ease of use

- Ability to find local Points of Interest even when we aren't sure what we're looking for

- Ability to find the closest gas station on the fly (of course that won't help if I don't fill up soon enough)

- Voice navigation

- Blue tooth capability

- Availability of International maps

Ultimately, all of these features, and their benefit to us, build a sense of trust in a little electronic device that can tell us where in the world we are.

This past weekend Chuck and I were reminded of how dangerous it is to trust in our GPS units. Being the kind of guy that will give the shirt off his back for you Chuck loaned his GPS to a friend while in FL for the wedding. It wasn't until Chuck and his new Bride departed Florida to start their new life together that he realized that he had not gotten the unit back from our friend. DOH! Shortly after this realization I was reading a text message from him... I'm sure you can imagine his sense of frustration.

Psalm 20:7 reminds us that while some may trust in earthly things, we should be trusting in the Name of our Lord.

If you own a GPS unit you probably have experienced getting lost even with its high percentage of reliability. Yet, why is it so much harder for us to rely on God for direction in life? Why is it so hard for us to trust the One who is ever faithful even though we think we know the best route?

What things have you grown to trust that have drawn you away from putting your full trust in God's faithfulness? What steps are you taking to rely on God for your global position?