Spiritual GPS

This wisdom story I received around October last year, but somehow it's ringing back in my mind so I decided to write it here.

It happened on October 2017, there's an event in Cathedral of Good Shepherd on one of Saturday nights. The programme started at 8pm but the guests needed to be sit at 7.45pm. The distance from my house to the church is not so far and usually takes around 15 - 17 minutes if there's no traffic jam.

As precaution, I decided to leave home early just before 7pm and hoped I could reach there by 7.45pm or earlier.

As I left the house, I switched on my GPS just in case there's something unexpected happen in the traffic even though I already knew the way to go there.

At first, everything was going smoothly, my and GPS route plan were the same until it's reaching the junction between Tanglin and Grange Road.

The GPS directed me to make left turn to Tanglin Road and went to Orchard Road, however in my mind I knew that Orchard Road was usually packed especially during weekend. Instead of following GPS, I took my own way which was going straight via grange road.

It went smoothly until in my surprise, there's an unusual traffic jam near the junction between Somerset Road and Grange Road. The jam was pretty bad, the cars hardly moved.

I saw my watch and since it still had plenty of time, I was able to calm myself down a little bit.

Finally I was out from the first traffic jam and turned to Orchard Road,  as expected there's a heavy traffic but not so bad, cars were still moving.

Again, as I drove out further, there's another traffic jam in the junction between Victoria St and Hill St when I needed to make u-turn. GPS instructed me to go straight towards Victoria St after making u-turn and on the left, that the church was. But once again, I doubted my dear GPS. I was afraid that GPS was wrong and I needed to make a u-turn again since I didn't think there's a gate there. I decided to go via other road and ended up in other bad traffic jam. People became impatient and honking one another. The buses were also stuck. It's clearly a big mess.

As the clock ticking, I started to panic. 

After  I was out for the second time from the mess, I decided to follow GPS and it directed me to the small road which I was not familiar and when I was reaching there, I decided to park my car at university building next to the church because I was afraid there's no more available slots in the church.

I walked more than normal speed to the church as it's drizzling too. When I arrived at the church, I still saw some car park slots were still available, and indeed there's a gate at Victoria Street which if I followed the GPS, it saved me from all the troubles.

I was like  Whatt??? How it's even possible ?

Thanks God, I arrived safely and sound just in time at 8pm with fast heart beat.

As I sat and started to settle down at church, I just reflected back what had happened during the last hour of my life.

God is like our GPS, He already knew the way, what's going happen in the future and what is the best way to reach to our final destination.

We go along with God when everything is going according to our plan and way. However when suddenly God changed the course because there's something that may happen in the future and He need to re-route our way, we have two choices, to follow His unfamiliar way or follow our own way. 

Chaotic usually happens when we decide to follow our own way.

Instead of trusting Him, more than often we trust ourself. We thought that we are smarter than God and know better than Him.

In the end, it's end up with a big mess.

What happen with GPS when we took a wrong turn ? Did it hang and force us to go back to the first route ? No

It changes its course and follows us but still directs us to the faster and right route.

Like God, when we take a wrong turn, He never shut us off or force us, instead He's still with us and going through with us. He patiently directs us to the right way. He's pretty flexible God, I would say.

However, how many times we are so stubborn or afraid that God may make mistakes.

We prefer to depend on what we know instead of trusting God's way which sometimes is irrational according to our limited knowledge.

In the end, we may reach to our destination if we follow Him. Some could be a long and frustrating journey, some could be sweet and short, it depends on us.

But one thing that never change is 

God is always with us in whatever way we choose, He's patiently going through with us and by His Grace always directs us back to the right path.

He never gives up on us.