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The Divine GPS: Psalm 25

Tillman Ravine
Good and upright is the Lord;
    therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
He guides the humble in what is right
    and teaches them his way.
(from Psalm 25 )

Life has a weird way of throwing us into total chaos.

That's what happened when I used GPS going to my nephew’s wedding. 

A one-hour trip took almost 4 hours mostly because I'm not familiar with GPS resulting in feeling completely disoriented, super anxious, with no idea what to do next.

Elaine took a roadmap from the glove compartment which gave us some clue about what to do next.

Reading these verses from Psalm 25 helped me see a divine roadmap for direction and peace.

In this honest prayer, King David shows us three simple mind shifts to make when we need a breakthrough:

Shift your focus: David starts by praying using verse 1:"To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul." 

When stress hits, we tend to obsess over worst-case scenarios. Trusting God doesn’t mean your problems magically vanish; it just means you choose to focus on God’s presence instead of your panic.


Shift your ambition: David continues praying using verse 4 by asking God to: "Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths." 

Instead of sketching out his own plans and asking God to rubber-stamp them, he keeps a totally open mind. True guidance requires letting go of control.


Shift your confidence: David, remembering that God is good, literally asks in verse 7: "Do not remember the sins of my youth." 

If you feel too broken or unqualified for God to care, don't worry. The Lord guides us because God is good, not because we are perfect.

Verse 9 ends with a beautiful promise: "He leads the humble in what is right and teaches the humble his way."

In other words, you don’t have to have direction in your life all figured out, simply follow the One who does.

 

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