Number 2 in the sequence of Gaylene with drink and food in hand. By the way, these pictures were taken with High ISO resolution, so they can be clicked on for more details. FYI

Happy Tuesday!

Genesis 15:1”After these things the Word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram, I AM thy shield, and the exceeding great reward.”

I do not like driving to places I have not been before. I am not confident in my directional skills and I do not have a good sense of my surroundings. This issue does not keep me from trying, but I am still not confident and I drive to a new place with a fair amount of uncertainty. This lack of confidence has been put to the test this summer as I have been a part of the fellowship group of teachers from my school. At Burton Hill Elem, we come from everywhere. I live in Arlington. We have teachers who live in Aledo, Weatherford, Benbrook, Lake Worth, Saginaw, Granbury and maybe even some in Fort Worth. Tomorrow our prayer and fellowship meeting is in Granbury. Bruce is busily printing out the MapQuest directions for me, while making sure not to draw me a map (drawing me a map causes major drama!) And I must admit that I am a bit nervous about driving two counties away. But it is my job not only to bring the topic for discussion, but I am also in charge of coffee!

In my 53 years on this planet I have faced far worse than not being able to confidently drive to a foreign place. I think the real issue is that I am really fearful of being lost. Besides being in darkness, being lost is a scary place for me to find myself. God’s Word in this passage tells me to fear not. The Word tells me that the Great I Am will be my shield and if I call to Him He will guide me. So tomorrow before I back out of the driveway I am going to pray that God will instill in me the confidence and awareness I need to get to my destination safely and in one trip. The odd thing is that I always pray for Bruce and the kids or we as a family when we leave on a trip. But I don’t think to pray for me when I am driving to an unfamiliar place.

Doc Adams, Casey’s oncologist, said, “The destination is never in question, but sometimes the journey sucks.” So I guess the question tonight is how do we keep the journey from being less scary? How do we walk into unfamiliar situations with confidence? Well, for me, I am going to begin to pray and claim this scripture, Romans 15: 30 “Join me in earnest prayer to God on my behalf.” I am going to pray for God to go before me and make the way straight and the directions clear so that I reach the destination God intends me to reach. Each time I strike out with MapQuest Directions in hand I try very hard to read and understand the print before me. I would love to tell you that I make it in one try each time, but that would not be true.

So, just as Bruce’s TomTom recalculates if he goes another way than the original instruction the TomTom offers, God does the same for us. God has given us His directions. He has given us His Word and He has given us a way to call Him if we get lost; He invites us to pray and ask Him for help when we get lost. He recalculates our way and eventually we will reach our destination because He has determined where He wants us to be for the work He has for us.

So friends, I ask you to pray for me as I travel to Granbury in the morning with directions in one hand and coffee in the other. And if I get lost I will reread my directions, try not to cry and pray for clear thinking to reach my destination. I will try to take joy in the journey.

My dear friends and readers, take joy in the journey and above all else read directions! Love you, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.

PS When MapQuest and I cannot connect and prayer is not fast enough, then my ace in the hole is always my beloved Bruce who can get anywhere blindfolded on the first try! Take care, g