"Clarity"
We often get so busy with life’s responsibilities—jobs, family situations, friendships, church activities—that we don’t take time to stop and look at where we’re going. We’re like a person frantically driving about, zooming away from stoplights and looking in our rear view mirrors to see if it’s safe to pass.
All the while, we really don’t know where we’re going.
We’re just driving, moving with the flow of our circumstances, keeping up with our colleagues, or trying to go faster than the people around us. We dread the thought of stopping to ask anyone for direction, so on and on we go. Sooner or later, after we’ve worn ourselves out from going in circles, we get a great idea:
Maybe I should ask my Heavenly Father.
"Where do you want me to go, Lord?"
What we’re really asking God for is clarity, a little word that’s so crucial to our Christian walk.
If we ask, I truly believe that He’ll make the vision plain. He wants us to be clear about His will for our lives because that knowledge guides us. It affects how we see our current circumstances and inspires us to press on for the spiritual destiny awaiting us.
The need for clarity moved God to tell the prophet Habakkuk to write the vision for the people so there would be no mistake. (Hab. 2:1-3) According to Psalm 84, God won’t withhold good things from those who walk uprightly, so if we are earnestly seeking to live out His holy vision, He’ll grant us the knowledge and wisdom to attain it.
Sometimes we start out knowing exactly where we’re going.
The problem comes when we to take a few detours along the way because life has thrown us some twists and turns. We can easily find ourselves unsure of the original mission, just driving aimlessly. In the midst of trials, it’s not hard to get sidetracked by our roadside stops and forget the actual destination.
Some time ago, I realized that God wanted me to write Christian books. I had a plan. I bought resources to help me learn about publishing. I even wrote the introduction to the book and fully intended to start my career as a Christian author. I don’t remember exactly when those plans dropped from my list of priorities.
Was it the various job changes, the barrage of church activities that I was involved in at the time, the boyfriend, or the family drama that threw me off track? That’s a question I still can’t answer because I was that driver cruising along with no clear destination.
Years later, I got back to that book. The good thing about our Lord, though, is that He can even take our missteps and make them useful. The knowledge I gained from those sidetracking experiences gave me greater insight for the book.
Praise God!
About the Author
Sharon Tubbs has been a professional journalist for 11 years and is the founder of Christian Writers of Tampa Bay, in Florida. Her book Milk & Honey: 10 Principles to Embracing Your Promised Land is available through her website at www.EmbraceYourLand.com. It can also be ordered at most major bookstores. Sharon Tubbs can be reached at EmbraceYourLand@verizon.net.
Copyright 2007 Sharon Tubbs. All rights reserved.
