How do you navigate in this scary world?
The way I see it, for most of us it is a matter of one of three possibilities. You either walk by sight - looking at what is in front of you and making a decision from what you see; by instinct – which I call pure gut reaction to things that have already happened in your life; or by trust in your Creator – the one who knows all, before it ever happens.
Sight; your response to seeing what is actually out there, and then acting in your own best interests. Example, seeing the stock exchange move up or down and you buy and sell accordingly. Or, your response to seeing a bridge out in front of you, so you turn off onto an unknown dirt road. Or seeing someone really attractive and wealthy and deciding ‘That one is marriage material for me!’
But here the problem: effective sight walking means seeing around blind corners and knowing what is coming before it hits. Good luck with that. Dirt roads, stock values, and beauty can be pretty unpredictable in the long haul.
Instinct; the belief that “It’s okay, you’ll just know what to do when the time comes.” Sometimes said with the ever-popular, “Whatever your gut is telling you, that’s what you should do.” Yeah, yeah, I know, Gibbs on NCIS could solve crimes by listening to his gut, but you ain’t Gibbs. (And besides, his track record of listening to his gut on the home front was definitely lacking.)
Actually, living on instinct and guts involves a lot of relying on what the past has taught you. Things like, leave a burning house. Don’t grab a sizzling hot skillet without a potholder. Don’t buy half a beef when you don’t have access to a freezer. Faced with anything along those lines, you will remember and be prepared to do the smart thing. But there’s a lot of decisions in life that you face, and your past can’t give any pat answers.
But here’s this.
Trusting your Creator; your Creator can actually see around the future corners, so ask Him to tell your heart and brain what to do when the time for a decision comes. He made you for a purpose within His plan. He loves you and wants the best for you. Accept that just like every little toddler feels the pain of falling down when he is learning to walk, He allows you to fall and feel pain sometimes. That’s how learning to walk is done.
That’s some of the options available. Now of course, you do you. You have that freedom, as you certainly should. But walking alone around blind corners, or just relying on past experience? That doesn’t hold a candle to asking the Creator to give you help and guidance for your future.
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