God Promises to Give Direction

Lesson Two • Fill ‘er Up
Devotion 4: God Promises to Give Direction 
Adeline Sanchez 

There is a certain detail in the story of the Israelites traveling from Egypt to the Promised Land that I legitimately think about all the time. We learn in Exodus 13:21 that God led the Israelites by a pillar of cloud through the day and a pillar of fire by night. The first time I read that, it was one of those moments where my brain said, “Hold up! Rewind that for a second. What did you just say?” It is so crazy, not only that God would do that for them, but also that the Israelites trusted that this cloud or fire was taking them where they were supposed to go. Also, if you look up the distance from Egypt to Canaan (The Promised Land), the amount of time it should have taken the Israelites to get from point A to point B is approximately eleven days. Do you want to know how long it took them to get there? You guessed it, eleven days! Ha, just kidding, it was actually 40 years. 

Now, do not be fooled into thinking that God was purposely making them wander for 40 years with no rhyme or reason to it, and definitely do not assume that the Israelites were completely submissive and obedient to God’s direction 100% of the time. Have you ever been driving with a GPS but then forgot that you were driving with a GPS? You keep missing turns, and the GPS has to redirect you to get you to your destination. Eventually, you will arrive at your destination. It is just going to take a lot longer than you originally thought. Imagine if you missed a turn while driving with a GPS, and the GPS just decided to turn off altogether because you did not follow it properly. Of course, that would not happen because the GPS is programmed to give you endless alternate routes no matter how many turns you miss. 

The reason Israel’s eleven-day journey took 40 years was because of their sin. They let their fear, impatience, pride, and endless other flaws control them and their reactions to God’s direction, but God never gave up on them. God continued to give them direction for their entire 40-year journey through the wilderness even when He was so fed up with their stiff-necked selves and their sins. He never left them stranded. He continued to direct them towards the Promised Land despite their blatant disobedience. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust In the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” God will never give up on us, even when we take wrong turns. If we can learn to put aside and surrender our fear and pride to God, He will give us direction. I promise that God’s direction for you is so much better than yours, and He will get us there if we trust Him.