By Judy Wallace
“To adjust or correct in accordance with an exact or precise instrument.”
The lovely voice on my vehicle’s GPS does her best to keep me on the straight and narrow road that is set to my desired destination. She takes me around traffic problems, which is nice, but she gets rather huffy if I try to stop for gas or pull into a Cracker Barrel! Although she has never used the term “recalibrate,” she is very insistent that I make a U-turn or turn right or left at the next street to get me back on track.
Thankfully, God has given us His own GPS — the Guiding Presence of the Spirit — to basically do the same thing for us spiritually. After setting our destination “to be conformed to the image of His Son” (Rom. 8:29), He uses His Word to “recalibrate” our journey through doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16).
Looking in the Old Testament, we see examples of God reminding His people to “…set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God…” (1 Chron. 22:19). This has always been the key to our life’s destination. Unlike a car’s helper, the Spirit doesn’t always take us around heavy traffic or standstills. Often, He leads us straight through them to strengthen our dependence on Him as our Guide.
For example, Isaiah 30 tells of the Lord’s rebuke against His people for choosing to look to Egypt and pay them gifts so they would care for and defend them. Needless to say, that didn’t quite work out. Yet God in His mercy promised to be their Defender and Guide when He tells them, “Though the Lord gave you adversity for food and suffering for drink, He will still be with you to teach you… Your own ears will hear Him. Right behind you a voice will say, ‘This is the way you should go,’ whether to the right or to the left” (Isaiah 30:20-21 NLT).
The book of Joshua begins with God’s promise: “Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:7 KJV). As a bookend, Joshua repeated this same principle to the people showing that his obedience to God’s direction toward his own destination had brought blessings they could enjoy as well: “Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside to the right hand or to the left” (Joshua 23:6).
At first glance, Isaiah and Joshua may seem to be saying two different things — one urging movement in response to God’s voice, the other warning against deviation. In reality, they are teaching the same truth. The key is intimate communion with our Lord — so that whether He says turn right, turn left, or stay the course, we respond to His voice and recalibrate accordingly. Doing so gives us joy, courage, confidence, and consistency as we Go and Tell.
Response — “Father, help me be keyed into the direction you have for my life each day. Help me stay aware of the opportunities you give and the lives that intersect mine, so I might share Your light and life to those in darkness. Help me be willing to recalibrate when You give instructions to do so and not stubbornly go my own way. Your Word is the precise tool for an obedient and blessed life. Thank you for protecting it through the ages.”
New Testament Passages — Luke 9:62; Phil. 3:13,14; Heb. 12:1,2
— These articles are shared via the National WMA web page blog that can be accessed at nationalwma.org/blog.
