The Detour

How many times have you driven down a road, in a hurry to get to your destination and run into one of these signs? Regardless of where it is you were going, having to go out of your way is sure to set you back. It will leave you frustrated and possibly wreak havoc on the rest of your daily schedule. This could really be a problem if the detour ends and your smack dab in the middle of nowhere without a GPS or a map. In terms of driving, yes this is just one of those minor inconveniences that you will soon get over as the week progresses.

What about the detour that takes your entire life in a different direction? Have you ever had a set destination in mind and found yourself at a roadblock, facing a detour sign that not only causes a momentary frustration but life altering heartache? All of us have had our share of them. You had a set plan, an ideal situation for your life, your future, your family and suddenly your world comes to a standstill. You sit staring blankly at the detour sign saying where do I go from here? Maybe the new way is not mapped out for you and you feel lost and alone with the unfamiliar path ahead. Navigating from this place is frightening and may leave you hopeless that you will ever find your way back to a normal route.

BEING DETOURED IS NOT THE END OF THE ROAD, JUST THE END OF THE ROAD THAT YOU MAPPED OUT.

As I was thinking about his today, I was reminded of the story of Joseph (Genesis 37-47). If there was ever a young man who spent his entire life going from one detour to another it was him. The youngest and most cherished son of Jacob; Joseph was known as the dreamer. God had given Joseph dreams that he would one day rule over his family. As a parent, I am sure that Jacob had dreams for his favorite son as well. He even fashioned a special jacket just for Joseph that was the envy of all his brothers.

Joseph’s dream was about to take a serious detour one day as he set out on a road. He had a short destination in mind. He was told to go check on brothers who were out grazing their flocks. Joseph walked down the road, most likely daydreaming of all that he would one day become. He assumed, I am sure, that since his dream was given to him by God, the road would be easy and his life would be great. Little did he know that just ahead on the road to easy street lay a detour sign.

Joseph was thrown into a pit by those jealous brothers, most wanting to leave him to die a horrible death, the others deciding it was better to profit from his disappearance, selling him into slavery. At least he ends up in Potiphar’s house. He quickly finds favor with his Egyptian Master and is promoted to an attendant. Not the dream he envisioned, not the road he had mapped out. He would  have to navigate differently in this new life. This unplanned life. This detoured life.

Joseph was finally settling in when the road to his destination took another unplanned detour. This time he was wrongly accused of a crime. He is soon thrown out of Potiphar’s house and into a cell. As he tossed and turned in the concrete place he now called home, his dreams probably looked a little different, a little darker, a little jaded and defiantly a little less optimistic.

Of course after spending years in that prison cell, Joseph is finally brought before the king and after interpreting his dreams is given charge over all of Egypt. This place of leadership allows him to save the people of the land, including those that had wronged him, his family. Joseph found the power to forgive not because his life was good or perfect but because the road he traveled was hard and uncertain.

Sometimes it is on the difficult path that God will cause the most growth in your life. This path may be the one you didn’t plan to take, it may not be the most traveled path, it may be a hard path, and it may not be the popular path. Others may not understand, or agree with the path you have taken. Others may look down on you when they see you walking along your lonely road. They may ridicule you, reject you or slander your good name. However, if God is leading you can trust that the road, no matter how difficult it becomes, will lead to a destiny of enteral love. A kingdom destination where neither moth or rust can destroy; where no thief can come in and steal…your treasure, your peace, your joy, your hope, your love, your destiny.

There has never been a time in my life where the story of Joseph has ministered to me so much. I can relate to his rough road. Since my childhood, I had dreams. I had dreams of being loved unconditionally, laughing uncontrollably, and trusting unreservedly. My dream took a detour after my first encounter with the monster who would take away my preschool innocence. My life took a detour into fear, mistrust, and parked along the roads of low self-worth and depression. I traveled years through the back roads of addiction and rebellion. However, it was upon these roads that I developed my great need for God. During the course of my drive, He planted in me gifts that I would never had found upon the road most traveled. It was here that I found deep compassion and empathy for those that were hurting. I felt the love of God towards those who were battling addition and rebellion leading me to the ministry of women in prison. I developed the protective heart of a shepherd for children; this would lead to years of ministering to children who like me faced their own monsters.

My life has changed drastically since that first detour and I began to dream again, new dreams. Dreams for my children. My marriage. My ministry. Until over the last two years, my life took an unexpected turn. The mission field I dreamt of did not take place within the walls of my own home. I would have to use the skills I developed over the years to walk beside my own family. For my child who battles addiction. For my other child who battles for peace with the past. For my grandchild whose bonds have been broken. Alongside my spouse, who lost his ability to provide for his family. I had to leave the pulpit to minister at home. I found myself at the crossroad of kneel alone and pray. Here I began to fight against the waging war that I did not see coming on the road to my dreams.

Today, as I read the passages in Genesis, I am encouraged. I realize that dreams given to us from God are not always found on easy street. Sometimes God will call us off-road, down an unmarked path. I have learned that the destination is no longer my goal, but it is the journey that God wants us to find our peace. Sometimes you will have to learn to live with a new normal, a new road. Life is not an open freeway, it is more complicated and often unmapped.  Can you navigate past the roadblock and find peace even if you end up where you never thought you would be? Today, if you find yourself sitting at a roadblock don’t just shut off the engine and refuse to move forward.   God may need you to take this detour to develop in you something that cannot be found on the easy road. Trust Him to lead and I can guarantee that you will never be alone.