The Unexpected Paths of the Lord

“The Israelites were dressed for fighting when they left the land of Egypt.”

— Exodus 13:18 (EXB)

I’m amazed that I’ve gotten this far in life with only one significant memory of being completely under-dressed! Paul and I lived in the Seattle area in the mid-eighties and somehow we missed the memo that a particular church function was a dress-up event (who plans those anyway)?  We arrived in our normal casual clothes with our normal casual toddlers on our normal hips and immediately felt our deficiency keenly. 

We all know there are some clothes for gardening and other clothes for weddings. We dress differently to eat popcorn and watch a movie than to go to the ballet. In general, people dress according to their expectations — considering the next event on their schedule. The nation of Israel was no different. In the post-Passover morning light, God’s people began a miraculous exodus out of Egypt toward the land God promised them and they were dressed according to their expectations of what that path would be like. 

Look how Exodus 13:17-18 describes that journey:

When Pharaoh sent the people out of Egypt, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was the shortest way. God said, “If they have to fight, they might change their minds and go back to Egypt.” So God led them through the desert toward the Red Sea. The Israelites were dressed for fighting when they left the land of Egypt. (EXB)

Hm, they were dressed for fighting, equipped for battle (ESV) even though that clearly wasn’t the way God was leading them. They thought the next event on their schedule was to leave Egypt via the Way of the Philistines, which would have required battle and battle attire — but they were mistaken. 

I’m sure you’ve had expectations in life and just like me, you emotionally dressed for them. You may have thought the next event on your schedule was marriage, or children, a particular job, retirement, or a certain type of ministry. But then you realized God did not lead you on that road. In Israel’s case, God had a far better path in mind for His kids. Granted, it looked scarier in the moment, but it got them to their destination with no casualties and God’s power fully on display.

The same is often true in our lives. God has a good path in mind for us and occasionally it may look scarier than our expected path. 

Look how Psalm 25:9-10 describes God’s paths: 

“He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.” 

The path that God leads us on is His responsibility, but how we respond to that path is our responsibility. Paul and I had no ability to turn that 80’s dress-up event into a casual affair just to suit our expectations and our dress. In our lives we’ll only make ourselves miserable if we insist that our path matches our expectations, rather than humbly changing our expectations to match God’s path. We would be happier and healthier if we would learn the art of quickly noting how God is leading, embracing the path He has chosen, and changing up our emotional and spiritual attire to match His path. 

Well, you’ve probably guessed how this topic relates to me. I’ve had to quickly change my emotional attire this summer since I entered this season dressed for ministry with an expectation of traveling and several retreats. But God has chosen quite a different path. It’s all good — all the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness. But, how does this topic relate to you? Has God allowed you to travel on a different path than you expected? Are you making swift adjustments to the reality of how God is leading you, or holding on to your previous expectations? 

As I said last week, I’m riding the Chemo Train (hereafter referred to merely as The Train) and tomorrow should be stop #2 of 16. My prayer and my goal is to keep to the Train Schedule.  With God’s help and because of your prayers — so far, so good. Thank you to each of you who are praying for me! 

Until next Wednesday…I’m just over here dressed for ridin’ The Train!

Sue

(sue@ccontario.com)