Strolling through Life!

Ephesians 4 (The Message)

 ^1-3 .....I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. I don't want any of you sitting around on your hands. I don't want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere.

I have done a little bit of running in my life.  I have run a couple of marathons, a few half marathons, and numerous 5k's or 10k's.  In order to run a marathon, and to some degree any race, you have to have a plan.  You can't just wake up one morning and say, I'm going to go out and run a 5k race.  You start your training with a shorter distance, work to build up to the race distance or a little bit further.  Then you work on racing or going at a faster pace.  Sometimes this training plan can stretch out for a few weeks, months, or even years.  I always thought an exciting part of the challenge of running was in the training.  I would try different workouts and see how that affected my race.  If it worked I would do it again.  If it didn't I would try something else.  But, I always had a plan. As I matured, my plans got better and better.

Do you know people who just seem to be wandering or strolling their way through life? They have no purpose, no goals, and no plans. They don't really do anything of significance. Maybe they spend their time in front of the television or reading blogs on the internet.(LOL!) God wants us to have purpose, drive, and to follow his plan.  In my mind, strolling is meaningless walking.  It's hard to run without having a purpose.  You're either running from something or toward something.  If you don't know where you're going, you usually slow down, walk until you figure it out, and then take off again! Just like training, sometimes the plan works and sometimes it doesn't.  But, you make adjustments and move on.  God has a plan for us.  That's the perfect plan.  Our goal is to try to find that perfect plan and follow it.  If we can build that relationship with God so we know his thoughts and hear his coaching, we will learn that perfect plan.  Once we know the perfect plan, we can run the perfect race.

Dear Lord, I know you have a plan for my life, every second of every day, of every year that I walk this earth.  I don't want to just wander through life aimlessly, with no purpose.  Guide me, Coach me, and Teach me to learn your perfect plan.  Amen!