Why I Hate GPS

Dailey's Weekly

GPS. It stands for Global Positioning System.

And some of us remember the days before GPS. Do you?

I’ll be the first to admit I’m a total dork, but I loved my Atlas BACK IN THE DAY. Before GPS. I was an Atlas nerd. Pages tattered and dog-eared, my trusty Rand McNally Road Atlas traveled with me under the passenger seat for years. I liked to track those squiggly lines of progress on road trips, note what towns we were coming into… It gave me a sense of control seeing the big picture.

Last week our family broke free of the rainy, cold mountains of east Tennessee in search of spring. We headed to the gulf coast in the panhandle of Florida. And how did we get there? We typed the beach house address into Google maps, plugged in the phone, and simultaneously started an audiobook of course. How else would we get there?

Photo by averie woodard on Unsplash

Nine hours into the trip, we hadn’t passed so much as a bathroom or Mickey D’s in two solid hours. When that stupid little woman coming through my car speakers said, “Turn right in 500 feet,” my mouth dropped. It was a red dirt road! A web of potholes leading to farms, plus clouds of red dust settling all over my white car. And we took the road, because… duh. What else were we supposed to do?

I missed Rand McNally.

I missed lunch.

I missed public bathrooms.

But it got me thinking… as these random scenarios in life often do. If we can only see the next step in front of us, and we have no real road map, how can we be sure where we’re headed? If Rand had been sitting in my lap, I would have happily navigated my loving family toward main roads only. Certainly not dirt roads in the land of Ma and Pa Kettle. And random gator farms… er, whatever those people out in the Florida country do to make a living.

Photo by Jack Kelly on Unsplash

Do you ever find yourself driving on auto pilot in your own life? Waking up every morning just to go through the motions? Doing the next thing? Without considering the actual direction you want to take, your purpose, or what steps are needed to aim yourself toward those shiny, lifelong goals?

While we were gone this week, I devoured 2 ½ fiction books and one non-fiction book (seriously, we all know reading is the best part of beach-ing). The non-fiction book was by Jack Canfield— all about the law of attraction and keeping your sights set on the real goals for your life. But if we aren’t checking our Atlas (our Bibles, our written goals, our prayer journals), how can we be sure our course is set right?

Today, friends, I’d like to ask you a few questions

I stopped to ask my lazy self

while lying on the beach this week (can you tell I miss it already?):

1. Look around. Do you know the name of the road you just took?  

2. Can you see the whole highway, or just the next hundred feet?

3. Where will this road take you?

4. Is it time for an exit or a U-turn?

When we stay on course with our life purpose, to serve others and serve God, the roads are clear. We know where we’re headed. And, even if life turns to dirt and potholes, we have faith there’s still a happily ever after with Him, just waiting for us at that last mile marker.

Photo by Cassio Dourado on Unsplash

When we try to navigate this journey sans the big picture stuff, our day-to-day can get scary. Depressing. Downright confusing. Wouldn’t you agree?

I looked at the new and improved, spiral-bound Rand McNally Atlases on Amazon this week. They’re only $25 bucks. I’m getting one to shove under my passenger seat. Our family shall never again be foodless and pottyless on the bumpy dirt back roads of Florida.

But more importantly this week, I’m making a more concentrated effort in other ways. I’m checking God’s road map for my life (His Word), assessing my current location, and U-turning my way back into His plan for my future. Hey, we all need a re-route sometimes. And His atlas is the sure-fire way to guide us where we need to go.

Verse of the Week:

Proverbs 3:6 “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.”

Quote of the Week:

“If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” -Jim Rohn