Roundabout
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer, for God thought, “If the people face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people by the roundabout way of the wilderness bordering the Red Sea. – Exodus 13:17-18 (NRSVUE)
Science tells us the shortest distance between two points on a flat surface is a straight line. The shortest distance between two points on a sphere is called the great-circle distance.
But when it comes to key moments and stages of our lives, finding the shortest, quickest distance is not the point. Efficiency is not the goal. And still we spend our days racing from one task, one meeting, one thing on our to-do list to the next.
God has a better idea.
Instead of treating life as a task to be accomplished or a destination to be reached, consider who you might love, how you might grow, and what you might give along the way. Instead of going straight to AI for the answer, noodle around and see what else you might learn. Instead of making your own way, discern where God’s love might be leading you. Instead of trying to control every outcome, trust God to work all things for good.
“God made the world round so we would never be able to see too far down the road,” said the Danish writer Isak Dinesen.
Chances are that we will, like the Israelites wandering in the wilderness, over time, become who God made us to be. And, in a roundabout process, we might discover communities where life-giving love flows like milk and honey.
Prayer
God of the straight line, the great-circle distance, and the roundabout, guide my feet in whatever way brings me closer to you.
About the AuthorVicki Kemper is the Pastor of First Congregational, UCC, in Amherst, Massachusetts, and a spiritual director.