For God's Purposes

"You lead me in the paths of righteousness for your Name's sake"  Psalm 23:4 

Dear People of St. David's,

I pray this note finds you well and like many of you I am looking forward to the Fair on Saturday. It's going to be a great day, rain or shine, and I look forward to seeing you there.

I got lost driving to a meeting a couple of weeks ago and the GPS in the car was absolutely no help. Being of the male persuasion, it took me awhile to stop and ask someone for directions and I didn't stop and ask for directions until I was close to where I thought I was supposed to be. I was so close, in fact, that the person I finally asked looked at me like I was a little crazy, as he pointed across the block to the place where the meeting was.(Another proof of why we don't need to ask for directions - I knew where I was going after all. Well, sort of.)

There are any number of pathways we can take in life and there are many pathways we take over the course of our lives. Some work out very well for us and some do not work out as well. Some of the paths we take in life have a certainty about them. Their purpose is clear and we take the path, not counting the cost or the distractions or the difficulties. I feel that way about building our family or being Rector of St. David's. I know in our family that to love my wife and our children and to build a loving and safe environment for all of us is my clear purpose. I know that at St. David's, the path is about knowing God in my own life, and helping others to know God in as loving and graceful manner as I can. I'm not always sure how to do that or where that will take us as a community, but wherever we find ourselves, it's the quality of staying on this path that gives purpose.

The Lord promises that when we follow Him, that when we follow in the pathway of living in relationship with God, we will be drawn into God's purposes and not just our own purposes. I like that promise a lot, since I'm often not too clear about the path I am on every moment of every day. Somehow, the promise that God is leading you and me, gives me a deeper sense of peace and a stronger sense of the goodness that is along the way. You see, God only has good purposes for us and for other people when we allow God to lead us in the paths of righteousness, in the paths that include God's leading and God's presence. And sometimes just being on the path that God is leading us on is a good purpose in itself as God makes His presence and love and peace present
in us.

So take a moment and look at the many pathways you may be following today and invite God to lead you on His pathway, for His purposes. I believe that you will find a life that is really life and the experience will be better than you could ask or imagine.

Grace and Peace,
WFA

P.S. Visit St. David's on Facebook and be sure to like us. I will be posting more messages about living Fearlessly there from time-to-time and I invite you to take a look.