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We all depend on our phone’s GPS system and it’s convenient and so easy. It not only gives you directions but also provides you with your estimated arrival time, how much time it will take, and how many miles you will travel. And it even talks to you! That alone can provide a chuckle the way some cities and towns are pronounced. Be sure to listen to how Toledo is pronounced. But, I do miss the “big picture” and looking at a full map. I am such a fan of maps. I just never seem to have them anymore since our dependence on the phone has increased.

I just returned how from a road trip to White Sulfur Springs in West Virginia. It’s 476 miles each way. The GPS tells me I will get there in 7 hours and 30 minutes. I don’t pay any attention to that. I add at least an hour. I enjoy a couple stops. You know the old expression “stop and smell the roses” along the way. It was an easy and peaceful trip down. Mostly, 79 South and then 64 West. No stress. Just plain easy.

When it was time to drive back, I quickly plugged my home address into the phone, not paying much attention, as I was just expecting that same easy trip home. The thing is, I carelessly did not look carefully to press the correct route from the 3 routes that were available. I assumed I pressed the same direct route home, but apparently I did not.

The trip started back easy enough – I heard the GPS say follow Pocahontas Trail for the next 92 miles. Hummm, I thought, I don’t remember driving the Pocahontas Trail but hey, I like the name! My mind wandered and I started singing “Just around the River Bend” from the movie Pocahontas. (My girls loved that movie! I love remembering the girls singing that song.) I was coming off such a fun weekend with friends. My heart was grateful and full of memories. I still was just driving and not really thinking much about how this route was different from the way I took down. Next I was on 92 North. Now, I’m thinking – this isn’t right – I don’t remember any of this, so I went back to my phone and realized that I was in the middle of the Monogahela National Forest climbing in and out of mountains with snow with no cell phone service. No cell service. I could not check my directions. I could not make a phone call. I did not have a map. I must have checked every 10 minutes. No cell service.

I did not panic. I simply said “hey, you are on 92 North, so you are headed in the right direction. You are in a good car and you have a full tank of gas.” I was fine. It was early on Sunday morning and there was not another car in sight. Just me in the mountains. I was grateful for the paved roads and those who made them possible. “It certainly wasn’t easy to design and build these roads way up here” I thought to myself.  I started to wonder what the signs on the road that say 9% grade mean. I am guessing that it means something like the road drops 9 feet down for every 100 feet of road.

My friends, please resist the temptation to think that God is not with us always.

I gave it all to Him. Again, I knew I was headed north, was in a good car and had plenty of gas yet I simply prayed. What I felt was a beautiful message of how none of us like being lost. God knows that. That is why God gave us the 10 commandments to follow and sent us Jesus to show us all how to live. We cannot be lost if we live our lives like that. You know Jesus does not want us to be lost. Not even one little sheep.

There are times in our lives when we all don’t feel like we know where we are going. When we feel lost out there living in this world. Maybe you don’t even feel God’s presence. That is when we should carry on. With perseverance. Keep your faith and trust even when we go off track and find yourself adrift. Always remember to stay the course. Trust and believe in God and His promises to us.

It didn’t take long for me to arrive in the town of Elkins, West Virginia. Cell phone service was restored and I found some very friendly people. I thanked God for giving me such beautiful reflections. I plugged my destination back in the phone and off I went. Yes, I was a little off course but I was back on track.

1. Carry a map.
2. Follow God’s plan for us. He gave us a map for life.
3. When we go off track, get back on. Never stop trying or believing.

When I got home and was bulldozed over by my dogs with a big welcome back, my husband said – How was the ride back doll? Aww, well, I got a little off track but my father, rather Our Father, was there with me the whole time.

Sincerely,

Trish

Tags : Lost, Reflections, West Virginia