Almost every day you follow directions whether you are aware of it or not. As a matter of fact on your way to work, school, or to run errands today you most likely followed directions given to you through traffic signals or signs. The purpose of direction is to lead us to a destination.

I love building things, but I am not always a fan of following the directions. Sometimes I will purchase a product and skip over the directions because I believe that I already know how to build, operate, or install it. When I was in college my dad had moved into a new home and purchased a Directv Satelite dish. Back then you had an option to install it yourself or pay a professional a lot of money. I had always been good with my hands and  I had installed a Directv Dish once before, so I thought this would be a no brainer. I didn’t even care to look at the directions because I had already done this before and immediately went to work. I was having no problems until it came time to mount the dish to the bracket that attached to the house. I immediately noticed that this bracket was different from before but proceeded anyway. It turned out that this new bracket was new because it allowed for the dish to swivel and lock into place. If I had read the installation directions, I would have noticed two things: first, the directions stated that I would need to set the locking pin before I mounted the bracket to the house; and second, that this stage of the directions required two people to put the dish in place. Well, I didn’t read this.

***WARNING: WHAT YOU ARE TO READ NEXT MIGHT BE DISTURBING FOR SOME READERS***

A few minutes later I was walking into my dad’s bedroom dripping blood on the brand new carpet in his brand new house, with one of my fingers partially attached. I immediately fainted and when I woke up my dad was driving me to the emergency room. When I attached the dish there was nothing and no one to keep it in place and it swung down and… well I think I will leave it at that.

***IF YOU SKIPPED THE LAST SECTION, JUST KNOW THAT I LEARNED A GOOD LESSON FOR FOLLOWING DIRECTIONS***

What I learned or at least I should have learned from that moment is that directions are important. In life, we often set goals or have desires for what we would like to accomplish. Without direction all we are left with is good intention. You can have all the good intention in the world but if they are not met with good direction you will not reach your intended destination.

This Sunday we will take a look at Saul (soon to be Paul) and how God changed Saul’s direction. If you are feeling like you are lacking in direction or that you have done your best to reach goals but have had little success, then I encourage you to join us at 10:30 PM for worship and 9:30 for Sunday school as we share with you how direction can change your life!

In God’s grip,

Pastor Chuck Church