Stay in your lane

A friend and I have been chatting recently about how easy it is to get in the 'wrong lane'!   Not necessarily with regards to falling into sin, but about the fact that it is so easy to move into someone else's lane, which may take us off on a detour, cause a delay, or mean we take on more than we were meant to.    

It's not easy to 'stay in your lane'. Instead, it's far easier to allow ourselves to be distracted from our own journey than it is to focus on what is right in front of us.  

'Distracted'  can take a lot of different formats: getting busy doing other things, worrying or overthinking, criticism of others, and procrastination, to name but a few. 

When we embark on our spiritual journey, we find out quickly that there are others in the race. Have you watched an athletic race?  You look on as the runners start and then gradually move to the inside lane, which is where you see most of the calamities happen as everyone is trying to run in one lane.  People trip over each other, or get stuck in the middle of a group they can't get around.   While I am not in that calibre of runner, I do usually get involved with Parkrun on a Saturday morning (it's a 5k run that happens all around the world at 9am on a Saturday morning).  I love the community of runners.   Sometimes, as I am passing someone who looks like they need some encouragement, I will say, "You're doing great. Keep going".  Last Saturday, a lady kindly ran the last little bit with me, encouraging me to push on to the end.  Sometimes something happens around me, and I forget what I am doing for a minute, and I might slow down or stumble, and sometimes people block the view of the way ahead, so I can't see where I am going exactly. Runners in the spiritual race are like this, too;  sometimes they encourage us, or we encourage them; sometimes they distract us, and sometimes we just can't see where we are going because of others around us.  Whatever category others fall into, we are never called to run their race or get out of our lane. 

God is not about us winning a race, really, he's about us finishing the race!  He has ordered our steps (Proverbs 16:9 - A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.) He knows the timings for things we need or places we have to be.

Proverbs 4:25-27 (NLT) tells us, "Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil."

God has a journey mapped out for you, and if you will just stay in your lane, you will find the race smoother, easier and less burdensome than if you try and get into a space you're not meant to be.

Keep your eyes on the road.  Take the course God has laid out for you and don't allow distractions and overthinking to rob you of the joy in your own journey.  Don't worry about what others are doing in their lane, just stick with yours.  Don't compare your route to theirs (the Bible tells us that comparing ourselves to each other is not wise). Let the Holy Spirit be your coach and guide you; stay in your lane, and you'll have a blessed journey. 


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