Breadcrumbs

Are you trying to figure out where to go from here?  Maybe you just went through a rough patch and you’re excited to run from it, to get out of there as fast as you can.  Or maybe you sense something wonderful in your spirit, something thrilling and spectacular is just beyond the bend in the road and you want to run to it.

Here’s the word I write so often: Wait.

Such a sense of pain can come from that tiny word.

Anticipation.  Longing.  Desperation.  A you’re-about-to-burst-out-of-your-skin kind of feeling.

But there is something to do while you’re waiting:  be on the lookout for breadcrumbs.

What in the world?  Has this just become a cooking blog?

No, my friends, it has not.

Breadcrumbs are those tiny little indicators, gentle specks of God’s guidance.  Confirmations to help you along the way that nourish your spirit, letting you know God cares, that He is leading you and you’re on the right path, and that you’re not alone even in the darkest of forests.

You see, God doesn’t want you wandering around, lost and frantic in the woods, nor does He want you to continue waiting when He tells you to move.

This is the essence of the breadcrumb.

You move along in the direction God leads, you find the breadcrumb and you pick it up, talk to God about it (remember He’s right there with you), and you listen to Him as He teaches you.  This can be a painful lesson, something you needed to learn the hard way or a blessing all on its own.  But it can be awfully tiny so you need to watch for it, watch for Him and what He’s doing in your life.  And remember He is always doing something even when you can’t see it.

Breadcrumbs can be His protection, to stop you from going in the wrong direction or those He wants you to stay clear from.  Breadcrumbs involve His timing.  Breadcrumbs involve obedience that lead to blessings.  So you feed on the one He has given while you wait on the next one.

That’s right.  You wait until you see another breadcrumb before you.  You don’t run ahead because you think you know the way or you have all the answers or because you think this waiting stuff is going to kill you.  You wait on God.  This can be any length of time.  But don’t panic.  You’re traveling with the One who created time and can stretch it like you’ve never imagined.

And while you’re waiting, just think:  you have the privilege, the high honor of spending time with Almighty God and resting in His presence.  Sit down.  Read His Word.  Talk to Him.  Listen to Him.  And then look around.  You may see more of Him in your surroundings.  You may feel the warmth of the sun on your head.  That’s His touch.  You may feel a breeze brush your cheek.  That’s His breath.  Perhaps you may even hear His voice speaking your name.  Can you imagine?

He may even lead you to a small pond where the wind forms ripples and the sun ignites them.  And when you look up, you see the very face of Jesus Christ; His eyes shining brighter than the reflection of the sun on the water’s surface and His presence warming your face.  It can be the image that you keep close to your heart, the one that tucks you in each night.

You never know what you’ll see while you’re waiting with God, waiting on His breadcrumbs, His gentle direction for the next step in your life.

Just know that waiting on Him and with Him is never a waste of time.  It’s His way of nourishing you for the road ahead.

“The Lord says, ‘I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.’” (Psalm 32:8 NLT.)