I’m directionally-challenged.

I don’t know what “turn southwest” means (I mean, is that left or right?!), and sometimes when my Google Maps app lady tells me to turn right, I accidentally turn left thinking I’m completely correct. I could chalk it up to normal human error, but even then, I still have the hardest time deciphering (what should be simple) highway directions. My internal conversations as I approach and am on highways goes a little like this:

(heart speeds up) Must… edge… into… oncoming… traffic… safely. Anddd success!
Hm, do I take this exit?…
Or THIS exit?
Wait, no, I think I just exited too early.
Or…wait… Am I even on the right highway?
WHERE AM I?
Okay, I’ll take the exit in a quarter-mile.
Wait, there are two directions to exit in. Is it left or right? Left. Or. Right. LAYO, CHOOSE!
(veers left)
Google Maps Lady: Rerouting…
(face palm)

Such is my life when I’m out on the road and not too familiar with my surroundings. Yes, I definitely panic when I’m waiting on the Google lady to tell me where to go, and she hasn’t said anything in 5 miles, and I see a stoplight coming up, and I wonder, do I turn? Am I going straight? What do I do, Google Maps lady?? It was at a time like this recently – when I began to internally panic as I drove to my destination – that God really started to tug at my heart and speak to me about patience and listening to Him in my life.

Now when I first heard Him nudging me about those two qualities in my life, my ears instantly perked up. Most of my family and friends would probably describe me as an exceedingly patient person and a good listener, so I was interested to dig into the lessons I could learn from using Google Maps for my direction-challenged self.

When I’m driving, with my Tori Kelly or Ed Sheeran music blasting, it’s so easy for me to think I heard the directions correctly, and then completely get lost because it turns out that I was more distracted than I realized from what really mattered. Once, my Maps app told me to turn left, and I promptly got into the right lane and turned right (and I thought I was correct). Have you ever done that before with God? Because I know I have. He very clearly gives us direction in areas of our lives that we’ve sought His help for, and then we, as His loving and obedient children, promptly get up and do the exact opposite of what He’s told us to do. I spent 15 minutes after that wrong turn driving around trying to find the right building before I even realized I was wrong. And that’s what happens when we take the wrong turn instead of listening closely and going where God’s called us. We end up aimlessly moving around, trying to find the right way but getting nowhere, only to see that if we had simply listened to God’s direction and gone His way, we would’ve found all that we were looking for.

Another feature that strains my relationship with the Google Maps lady when I’m driving, especially on the highway, are the quarter-mile warnings of where to turn. I absolutely despise them. For me, that’s not enough time. I need probably a 3-mile warning so I can have enough time to get over to the correct lane and figure out where I’m going. But it turns out that those reminders actually come exactly at the right time, to give me just enough time and space to get where I need to go – so long as I am quick to heed the command. Many times in my life, I look at situations, and I ask God, “Uh, helloooo? Care to tell me how to proceed right about now?” But 2 Peter 3:9 tells us that “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (NIV) His directions come at exactly the right time. But in order to hear them, I have to be patient and wait for His timing, and then listen for His voice so that I can immediately heed His commands.

Patience and listening go hand in hand. Without one, the other quality’s usefulness isn’t maximized. My prayer is that we would never be too hurried to sit in God’s presence, and wait on Him. That we would never be too rushed to be patient enough to hear His voice. That voice is what gives us guidance for each of life’s situations, helping us live abundant lives in Christ. It’s to our benefit to sit, be patient, and listen. And when we do, there’s no telling all the awesome places God will lead.