Searching for Direction

Trying to find our way in life can be tough, life is full of ups and downs of trying to figure out what direction to go with our lives, and what our purpose is. It can be pretty painful when it feels like we are going through this process alone, and the people around us are not understanding. We know we are looking for something meaningful to do with our lives, but with everything we find, we can’t hold on to it for long, we lose our excitement or passion for it quickly. We find ourselves jumping from one thing to another and never seem to get anything right. Many times we wonder why things are taking so long for us, we ask ourselves why we have to do several things before we find out, what it is we want to do with our life. We go from one seminar to another, where we learn all this great tips on how to find our calling in life, or our passion; we read books after books, attend one conference or the other but yet we still feel confused. Maybe you didn’t attend conferences or seminars, instead you sought the counsel and prayers from a godly man or woman you consider as a mentor or a spiritual father or mother, yet with all the prayers, and advice you got, you still are not clear about the path to take for your life. If this is you? You’re not alone I have been in your shoes. There were times when I felt like I was going through life blindly. For a long time I was desperately searching for direction for my life, I wish someone could give me the answer to some of life toughest questions and challenges; or give me some magic formula on finding the right direction for my life. I would often ask myself, why I would often feel confused about my life. Why is it taking me so long to achieve things that seems easy for others? Why do I have to wait for every single thing? When is my life going to start? Is there something wrong with me? The scripture speaks about this in the book of Proverbs: it says: “The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps (Proverbs 16:9) We can plan all we want about the things we want to do and accomplish with our lives but at the end of the day, only God has the final say. He sees the end from the beginning, and he knows what is best for us and his plans far out-weighs our own plans for our lives. When we’re truly submitted to him, we align our plans with his will and that is when he directs our path and things begin to fall in place. As children of God, we are not supposed to live life in our own power or strength, we need God’s direction for our lives. Every project or tasks I engaged in without God’s leading, ended up as a failure. It didn’t matter how much effort I put into, or how much I believed in the project, it didn’t work out. Sometimes God allows us to have things our way when we resist his help, and of course we end up running back to him anyways, because our human effort alone couldn’t sustain it. Anything we do outside of God is going to cost us too much, at the end it’s not going to be worth it. We cannot run faster than God, when it is not your time or your season to do something and you try to make it work, you end up with headaches and pain. It takes wisdom and discernment to know how to move by the spirit, and not with our natural mind. Everything God does is done in steps, he didn’t create the world in one day, each day he made something different. If God took his time to create things, then we shouldn’t expect to our purpose /calling to happen in a short time. Sometimes God may reveal our future to us, but he doesn’t always show us the preparations or process we would have to go through to get there. There could be a lot of time that passes from the time God gives us the vision, and the fulfillment of the dream. Joseph was 17 years old when God showed him the great plan he had for his life, at the time Joseph was just like any regular teenager, maybe feeling a little stuck up because he was his father’s favorite, and he also had dreams that his brothers and his father will one day serve him. Unbeknownst to Joseph he will face a series of disappointments, hardships, betrayal, and suffering before he will get to his purpose. Just like Joseph we may had revelations of how God is going to use us in the future, or the great plan he has for our life, but things from that point on begins to go wrong.

We usually face our greatest challenges in the process of birthing a dream, at times it may feel like God has forgotten you, or nothing seems to work no matter how hard we try. It may take us a long time before we begin to see the fruits of the vision coming together; meanwhile in the process we’re losing friends, our family is turning against us, we’re facing strong opposition, feeling confused and overwhelmed, and just feeling pressure from every side. We look around us and we see people walking in their purpose, achieving their dreams, and doing great things, and here we are, feeling like how life is heading nowhere. “For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay” (Habakkuk 2:3). This verse provides strength for the weary individual who has waited so long to see their dreams come to pass, or for that person who is so close to the promise/ dream but who is about to give up. God has promised he will not allow more than we can handle. God lights the path that we are on, we may not see all the steps we need to take at once, but we can be at peace knowing that God is leading us; and we can find grace for each day when we chose to trust in him. There is no formula for finding direction in life, what may work for one person may not necessary work for another, stop trying to figure it all out, you’ll wear yourself out, stop comparing your life with someone else’s and feeling like failure, quit trying to making things work that God’s blessing is not upon, stop trying to fit in. Your present circumstances do not dictate your final destination, no matter how long it takes keep pressing. God never fails, if he has decreed a thing it will surely come to pass. Allow God lead you one step at a time, his grace is sufficient for each day!