I remember it like it was yesterday. My siblings and I were in the car with my mother during a bad storm. It had been raining really bad and it was very dark outside. In order to get to our destination we had to cross a bridge that was known to flood during heavy rain. I guess my mother was hoping it wasn’t going to flood that day. She drove very slowly as we inched our way toward the bridge in the darkness. Before we knew it we could hear water and my mother hollered in a panic. The front of the car was almost covered in water! I remember thinking we were going to drown that day and judging by the looks on my siblings’ faces, they thought the same. But as soon as I thought it, I heard my mother change the gears, putting the car in reverse, and I felt the car move backward. We were backing out of harm’s way! After getting a safe distance away, my mother turned the car around to head in a new direction, one that would take us the long way around.

You have found yourself in a bit of a mess. You’ve traveled down a road that has left you feeling ‘dead in the water’. You’re stuck and you’ve been stuck for a minute, yet you tell yourself you don’t know how you got stuck. It happens. But there’s a jewel laying there in front of you. You don’t have to stay stuck. Back up and turn around! Many times our ‘stuck’ situations are the results of moving too fast, too soon, trying to get to a destination that requires a slower pace and divine timing. Be patient and do the work to go down the road less traveled, where God would have you to be. Your direction and pace has gotten you stuck too many times. Slow down! Be careful that you don’t move so fast that you’re ahead of God. The Bible says in Matthew 7:13-14,

 “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention.” (The Message Bible)

Come on. Re-focus! Begin heading in God’s direction.