Road Maps and Reality

Remember wrestling those fold-out maps on a car trip? They were my ever faithful traveling companions, complete with the frustration of refolding them, until road atlases became popular. All the maps were in one bulky book. Big improvement at the sacrifice of minor details.

But the road maps and atlas have gone the way of the Yellow Pages, and now we get our directions online through a variety of map software and GPS (Global Positioning System) technologies. Big improvement with even more details, and the directions are in our ears!

Still, nothing is foolproof or flawless. I love the caveat on one software. On every map, printed or otherwise, is the tiny disclaimer: “When using any driving directions or map, it’s a good idea to do a reality check and make sure the road still exists. . .”

I wonder how many people ended up in a cornfield, or a ravine, before the high-tech cartographers began adding that gem. But it reminded me of some good, common sense about, well, what often sounds like good common sense.

It’s easy to find ourselves using old directions that no longer apply. They are stray bits of human advice pieced together over time that kept us safe, or seemed to, but now either restrict our movement needlessly, or put us at risk dangerously. Our well meaning parents gave us some, as well as cousins, aunts, and uncles, and of course, our peers. Our associates all seem ready to tell us how to live, even if their own lives are in disarray.

Look around you. Where have your life directions taken you? Are they leading you towards the Kingdom about which Jesus spoke? If not, perhaps it’s time for a reality check.

“There is a way that seems right to a man,
but in the end it leads to death.”
Proverbs 14:12.


Leave a Reply