Devotionals for the Heart: Following God's path and staying on track

Get Back on Track
A devotional by Monique M. Anderson

"Jeremiah, say to the people, 'This is what the Lord says: "When people fall down, don't they get up again? When they discover they're on the wrong road, don't they turn back? Then why do these people stay on their self-destructive path? Why do the people of Jerusalem refuse to turn back? They cling tightly to their lies and will not turn around."

— Jeremiah 8:4-5 (NLT)

The car is packed, your essential snacks are in tow, the gas tank is full, and you've just entered the address to your destination into your navigation system. Finally, you are ready to go. You hit the road, and things are running smoothly. Traffic is minimal, and it looks like you will get to your desired destination in good time.

As you're singing along to your favorite tune, you suddenly realize you've missed your turn. The navigation starts to re-route you, but that will take you miles out of the way and add more time to your travels than you would like. So instead of being re-routed, you decide to turn around to get back on track. It saves time and energy from having to be taken entirely out of your way.

If only we made it that simple to get back on track with God when we deviate off course. Like Jeremiah 8:4 (NLT) says, "When they discover they're on the wrong road, don't they turn back? Then why do these people stay on their self-destructive path?" We won't allow ourselves to stay on the wrong path for too long while driving, mainly because we don't want to veer off too far from our intended destination. So why can't we do the same in life?

We will veer from God's path for our life and somehow think we can figure out how to get back on track on our own. Then, instead of just making a U-turn, we decide to re-route ourselves, which takes us farther and farther away from the intended destination and we end up completely lost.

In the first few chapters of the book of Jeremiah, God is casting out His judgment and plans of destruction upon Jerusalem because they turned their back on God and worshipped other idols. All the while, He gives His people plenty of opportunities to turn away from their sins and get back on track, but they refuse. They instead choose to continue down a destructive path.

Sometimes the easiest thing to do instead of being re-routed is to stop and turn around. Why continue down a path of destruction? Why do we always think we know better than God? He is forgiving, loving, and merciful, but somehow, we always want to do our own thing. It is much easier than we think to get back right with God. Just stop, turn around and go back to Him.

Don't let your own desires for life make you too proud to turn back to God. It is never too late. You can avoid a fate of devastation, confusion, and ruin by simply turning around.

Let's Pray: Father God, forgive us for turning away from you, even for a moment. Forgive us for thinking we know a better way than yours. Father, we are stopping today right where we are and turning back. We are making a U-turn and coming back to you in total surrender. We ask for your mercy and forgiveness. We will trust you from here on out to be our forever guide through this journey of life. In Jesus's name we pray. Amen.

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Author Bio:

Monique is a writer, wife, and bonus mom to a 14 year old. She just recently unleashed her always present yet hidden talent of writing to the masses. She was born and raised in Mount Vernon, NY where she still resides, and serves on the prayer team of her church The Gathering Harlem. 

Monique always felt like God was chasing after her, but never felt the need to surrender. Until that is when life started veering left, and she no longer wanted to steer so she finally gave Jesus the wheel. After forming her relationship with God she always felt compelled to share the revelation’s that the word gave to her. She always felt the Holy Spirit prompting her to write, but was afraid of what people might think. So her writing started in her journal. The journal turned into a book, and the book into a blog.

Slowly but surely God’s love started to cast out all fear. She started to consistently update her bi- weekly blog yourstrulymoe.com. Her obedience led to further revelation. God revealed to her that he would use her to help others along their walk the same way God helped her along hers. Since Monique did not grow up in church she always felt intimidated by the Christian life. She thought that she would be losing so much of herself, not realizing that she would actually find her TRUE self.

Since God has shown her who he really created her to be, she now feels it is her life’s work to help those that are taking their first baby steps in this walk with Christ. She is doing so through her blog, and soon to be published book. She is excited to extend her reach to podcasts and speaking engagements in the near future.

Her blog is the stepping stone to fulfilling the vision God gave to her – “Sharing God’s revelations so we can all reflect his image and fulfill his purpose.”

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Connect with Monique:
Website: www.yourstrulymoe.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourstruly__moe/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Yours-Truly-Moe-140255684101423