"Long Way Round"

Sometimes I take the long way round,

To where I need to go,

Never found the short cuts,

Or had someone to show.

Never was the fastest,

If I arrived at all,

Someone more successful,

Could always make that call.

And when I’m in a hurry,

Which happens often, too,

It seems to do me no good,

Except I’m stressed it’s true.

Better ways to get there?

I doubt that I could count,

But I’ll just pull my cinches,

A horseback, steady mount,

And now that I’ve grown older,

It’s better when I pace,

A more deliberate pattern,

As I run this race.

But most of all the Spirit,

Need Him to lead the way,

Dependent on His power,

To follow day by day.

“…be filled with the Spirit…” (Ephesians 5:18, NLT)

Filled with something, right? Anxiety, fear, worry, stress, confusion, anger- it’s a long, unhappy list. We are watching people destroy others because they are filled with racial anger. It’s a heart-breaking shame. What are you filled with? If we ask God to empty us of the wrong things and we’re willing, He will actually answer that prayer. If we ask God to fill us with His Spirit, we are praying according to His will. He will answer that prayer, too. When He fills us, it means we’re giving Him the reins. He will lead us and then life becomes an adventure of learning and doing what He wants. And that was what we were orginally created to do.

Lord, fill and lead us, in Jesus’ name.

Photo by Kirstie Lambert, used by permission. Thanks, Kirstie, and God bless you.