Do you know where you are going?

William Franklin Graham, affectionately known as Billy Graham, was an American Christian evangelist, ordained as a Southern Baptist minister, who rose to celebrity status in 1949 preaching in large indoor and outdoor rallies; sermons were broadcast on radio and television, some still being re-broadcast today.

Billy Graham was chaplin to several Presidents; he was particularly close to Dwight D. Eisenhower and Lyndon Johnson . During the civil rights movement, he began to support integrated seating for his revivals and crusades; in 1957 he invited Martin Luther King, Jr. to preach jointly at at revival meetings in New York City.

In January 2000, leaders in Charlotte, North Carolina, invited their favourite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honour. He hesitated to accept the invitation because he was struggling with Parkinson’s disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, “We don’t expect a major address. Just come and let us honour you.” So he agreed.

After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said, ”I’m reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honoured by Time magazine as the “Man of the Century.” Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of every passenger.

When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn’t find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets, but it wasn’t there. He looked in his briefcase but couldn’t find it. Then he looked in the seat beside him. He still couldn’t find it.

The conductor said, ‘Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I’m sure you bought a ticket. Don’t worry about it.’ Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the great physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for his ticket.

“The conductor rushed back and said reassuringly, 'Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don’t worry, I know who you are; no problem. You don’t need a ticket. I’m sure you bought one.’ Einstein looked at him and said, ‘Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don’t know is where I’m going.” Having said that Billy Graham continued.

“See the suit I’m wearing? It’s a brand new suit. My children, and my grandchildren are telling me I’ve gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion."
“You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I’ll be buried."
“But when you hear I’m dead, I don’t want you to immediately remember the suit I’m wearing. I want you to remember this: I not only know who I am. I also know where I’m going."

In general, I am not directionally challenged, but it seems that way sometimes when I try to navigate while the car is moving. Even though I know where I want to end up, I can’t figure out the best way to get there if I don’t stop to find out where I am. I need to get my bearings.

This can be true in our spiritual life as well. When we try to figure out the way God wants us to go, we need to stop and get our spiritual bearings. If we don’t, we are likely to end up lost in unintended places, situations, or relationships. In helping His disciples navigate life and find their way through the traps and temptations of the world, Jesus often said, “stop doubting and believe”. To follow The Lord Jesus, we frequently have to stop something we are doing that’s wrong. As we depend on His guidance, we will learn to go in the way He says is right.

Proverbs 14:12

There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Psalm 139:23,24

Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. 

John 14:6

Jesus said "I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh unto the Father but by Me". 

So have a good day today and remember it doesn't matter who you are, but it's ALWAYS good to know WHERE you're going.

Written by a Guest Blogger