Crossroads

Have you ever come to a crossroads and you weren't sure which way to go. With my sense of direction that has happened to me more than a few times. Sometimes the crossroads are more metaphorical than literal. Not long ago I stood at a crossroads in my life. It was extremely difficult to discern which way to go as two divergent paths lay at my feet. I hesitated for some time, unsure which path to choose.

I usually think of myself as a patient person. However, I don't like crossroads. I don't like ambiguity in my life. I like having a clear sense of direction. I like knowing what my schedule will be for the next day. That's the kind of predictability and, yes, I'll admit it, control I like!

So I've been thinking a great deal of what it must have been life for Jesus when he came to a crossroads in his life and chose, as Luke tells us: "Now when the time was almost come for Jesus to be received up [to heaven], He steadfastly and determinedly set his face to go to Jerusalem. (Luke 9:51, Amplified Bible) Jesus, in his divinity, must have know this was the only course that could fulfill the Divine purpose of his life. Yet Jesus the man with free will-like you and I-must have longed to run away from Jerusalem and the cruelty and pain that lay ahead for him there.

Jesus chose the self-less path, even as he struggled with is choice. That struggle was not finally resolved until the night he sweat blood and tears in the Garden of Gethsemane. yet his trust in his Heavenly Father was so great he could walk "determinedly" toward Jerusalem and the cross, though every fiber of his body wanted to run away.

I pray that you will be strong and courageous when next you stand at a crossroads in your life. May Christ's example inspire you as you take those first tentative and frightening steps into the unknown.

Choose the selfless path. Choose the path of trusting in the amazing grace of our awesome God. Choose the path that leads to light and LIFE!

Have a happy and joyous Easter!