I’m directionally challenged. I don’t know how I ever got around without a GPS. It’s a miracle that I ever got to my intended destinations before we had Global Positioning Systems on our smart phones. Have you ever felt lost? Not the kind of lost that is corrected with a GPS or a map. I mean lost. The cobwebs in your head kind of lost. The not sure if you’re coming or going kind of lost. You don’t know what to do kind of lost. We’ve all been there. And if you haven’t, well your day is coming!
Job knew that lost feeling. He said, “I go east, but he is not there. I go west, but I cannot find him. I do not see him in the north, for he is hidden. I look to the south, but he is concealed.” (Job 23:8-9 NLT). Job was in the midst of a crisis and he just needed a little direction. The problem was that he couldn’t seem to locate God. He couldn’t find Him in the east. He wasn’t to be found in the west. He was hidden in the north, and in the south He was concealed. At least that’s what it seemed like to Job. But when you’re lost it seems like you can’t locate God.
But Job found comfort: “But He knoweth the way that I take: When he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:10). Job didn’t know where God was, but God knew where Job was! Job wasn’t lost, he was exactly where God wanted him. Job realized that this was a test, and if he just stayed on course then he would come forth as gold.
How did Job know that God knew his location? “For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside” (Job 23:11 NLT). Job had stayed on God’s path though he was suffering and felt lost. The way that you stay on God’s path is continuing in God’s word: “I have not departed from his commands, but have treasured his words more than daily food” (Job 23:12).
Beloved, God knows where you are. It may seem as if God is silent, but He’s there with you. The best way for you to stay on God’s path during the test, is to pay attention to the roadmap He has given you, and that is the Word of God.