By Brother Guy Ames

Deuteronomy 31:7-8

As a young man, I enjoyed setting out on a trip without any agenda, going wherever the road and the Lord led.  On occasion, I encountered some divine meetings and had some amazing experiences as God opened unexpected doors and conversations.  I loved those unexpected divine encounters. Truthfully, those occasions are few.  Most of life is routine and even anticipated; I like to know where I’m going and what to expect.  What I don’t like are detours.  But life’s journey is filled with unexpected detours.

I love Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase of the closing charge, as Moses hands leadership of the Hebrew Children to Joshua.  After forty years of depending upon Moses to offer guidance and to translate God’s direction, now Joshua would step into that role.

Then Moses summoned Joshua. He said to him with all Israel watching, “Be strong. Take courage. You will enter the land with this people, this land that God promised their ancestors that he’d give them. You will make them the proud possessors of it. God is striding ahead of you. He’s right there with you. He won’t let you down; he won’t leave you. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t worry” (Deuteronomy 31:7-8).

Joshua had no idea of where he was leading, nor what was ahead of him.  Moses doesn’t give him any leadership manuals, nor a map for his future, only the reminder that no matter what lay ahead, God has already gone before him.  “He won’t let you down; he won’t leave you.”

Many of life’s detours leave us unprepared. Even those “longed-for” detours can leave us wondering where we’re going.  After enjoying the birth of three sons in 3 ½ years, I began to realize that just as I learned how to parent a particular age they grew and changed without even asking my permission.   By the time my oldest reached teen years, my expectations had changed dramatically.  We don’t necessarily love these detours, but into every life they come.  And with every new life detour comes the opportunity to trust the One who “is the same, yesterday, today and forever.” 

Coming to the end of nearly fifty years in ministry has brought some unanticipated “detours” for which I’ve not been prepared. Retirement followed by cancer; followed by my wife contracting Covid leaving her chronically ill; led us to relocate across country to be near family.  Leaving behind friends, community, and church to start over in retirement years isn’t easy.  I have missed being among people who know me, with whom we have a history.

So, what happens when the road of life turns and a detour meets you, and you end up in a place you had not expected?  Yes, we love being in a familiar, safe place, but we are never alone.  It’s at this point that I REMEMBER that no matter where I go, or wherever I am, and no matter what challenges lay ahead, Jesus has gone ahead of me.  He is the One who KNOWS me, who LOVES me, and the One who goes before me. “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”