Prayer Is Not a Four-Leaf Clover. Prayer Is a Compass.

A child of God once blamed himself for shortcomings, miscalculations and investment concerns. In the world’s estimation, maybe there was some validity in his feelings; but in God’s wisdom, there was no truth in these false claims. Let’s think about this.

This child of God never steps out on his own. Only after prayer (and never before God’s leading) does this man take a single stride in any direction. Neither prayer, nor listening to God’s will and way, is this man’s misleading mistake in deciphering his evaluation of outcomes in life’s situations. His short sightedness is rooted in his overlooking prayer is not a four-leaf clover that magically brings good luck as the deliverer of riches, dreams and successes. Prayer is a compass; and God’s compass sometimes leads us over treacherous mountains, through dark storms, out of deep valleys, into crisscross traffic snarls and in round about dilemmas before delivering us to the open doors of our greatest destinations.

The significant element is not, at this moment, where we are, but rather, did we begin on bended knee, asking God to chart our course and then faithfully follow His guidance. If so, then at every moment and turn of the road, we are exactly where God, not only, desires us to be, but also, directs us to be. God, and God alone, knows how, when and where we will find our triumphs. Defeat is not any, less than perfect, place we visit along the way. These challenging potholes are not detours taking us away from our longed-for destinations. They are, merely, watering holes where our faith and hope grow stronger, our tears might rain but, ultimately, SONshine penetrates the clouds and undeniably reigns.

Sometimes, the greatest challenge we face is not to reach our destination but to realize we are not there yet. Don’t judge the present as the gift God ultimately is giving us. At many moments, where we are might not be where we long to be. However, it just might be a needed stop over on the sole path that, God knows, will “soul”y lead us to our greatest and most longed for reward.