Two-minute read.
Watching a sitcom, one of the characters had a compass tattooed on his arm after getting lost in the woods. In his distorted thinking, he decided the permanent compass would help him find his way if he ever got lost again. We all have the potential to lose ourselves, getting off the beaten track, unable to find our way back to the path. One tragic incident that happened a few years ago involved the death of a hiker. Trekking the 2,190-mile Appalachian Trail alone, the hiker left the trail to relieve herself and lost her way. In her journal, they discovered her poor sense of direction, which led to her death from starvation and exposure.[1]
If we don’t have a true north, a focus point we can rely on to keep us on the right track, like the lone hiker, we can lose our way. One of my favorite sayings, “Keep the Son in your eyes,” I learned from Pastor Sam Goins long ago. When we place our faith in Jesus, He becomes our true north. When we live to please the Savior, He will guide our steps and help us stay on the straight and narrow, leading us to eternal life with Him.
Jesus hears the conversations we don’t hear and sees the circumstances we don’t. From our limited perspective, we only see in part, but the Lord sees the whole. We can’t see the end of the trail, but God does, and we can trust Him to lead us in the right direction. In friendship, if we start to care more about what the person thinks than the Savior does, we can get lost.
When we put people before the Savior, we can lose our way, spending our time trying to make someone happy we can’t. The Lord doesn’t call us to fulfill someone’s every wish, but to love them. To have healthy relationships, we must keep the Son in our eyes and do what He did. Jesus didn’t enable people; He helped them become the best version of themselves. If they chose not to do what He said, the Lord let them go, allowing them the space to make their own decisions and suffer the consequences.
Keeping the Son in our eyes gives us a true north. We don’t need a compass; Jesus will direct our paths when we follow Him. The Lord helps us remain loyal to our friends without losing ourselves in them. God will never steer us wrong; He always has our best interests at heart, both for ourselves and for our friends.
Journal Questions:
How does Jesus give you a true north?
When have you strayed off the path and found your way back with Jesus?
In what ways can you keep the Son in your eyes?
Friendship Application:
Keep the Son in your eyes and let Him direct your paths.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/27/us/missing-hiker-geraldine-largay-appalachian-trail-maine.html#:~:text=Geraldine%20Largay%20at%20the%20Poplar,how%20many%20years%20from%20now.%E2%80%9D
