Divine Apps
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses,
who trust in the multitude of their chariot
and in the great strength of their horsemen,
but do not look to the Holy One of Israel, or seek help from the Lord.”
Isaiah 31:1 NIV
I don’t know what I’d do without Waze. You know, the little travel app used to navigate while driving. I use it pretty much all the time these days, whether I’m on a long road trip to the Carolinas or just trying to find the quickest route to drop my kids off at school. Travel apps like Waze are extremely helpful except … when they’re not. Many times, I’ve been told by an app to reroute my course, only to find myself on some obscure country road or stuck in gridlock traffic.
I recently read an article that said using travel apps like Waze to find faster routes is “rarely helpful and frequently make things worse.” Perhaps you’ve had a similar experience.
I find this happens in life, too. We are constantly searching to optimize everything, whether it is a faster route, a new diet fad or a management hack. Often, without even thinking, we look to these apps or to the latest online counsel in hopes that it will address our most pressing issues. Don’t get me wrong, these things can be helpful. For Christians though, there’s another place we should look first. As the Prophet Isaiah reminds us, we should “seek help from the Lord.” (Isaiah 31:1) God, we might say, has divine apps that help us navigate the complexities of life. The first is Scripture, but for Scripture to really work, we need to be frequent readers of it. Over time, as we engage God’s Word, our hearts and minds will become saturated with God’s wisdom. Secondly, and alongside our reading of Scripture, we should take up the practice of praying regularly. Prayer is a way of not only communicating with God, but also realigning our desires with God’s.
As you begin your day today, what is the one thing that is troubling you the most? Whatever it is, I encourage you to start with God. Seek His counsel first. You can start by reading a portion of Scripture and ask yourself how it speaks to you. Then say a short prayer. It doesn’t have to be long or ornate. Simply share with God everything that you are thankful for and then pour out your deepest desires to Him. God’s algorithms of Scripture and prayer might not give you an answer right away or even the answer that you were expecting, but they will most certainly lead you in the right direction.
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