by Jennifer Haynie @JenniferHaynie1

“Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”

—E.L. Doctorow

I recently used this quote in a meme on social media. It specifically refers to writing, and as someone who just started the rough draft of her next novel, I can totally relate to that. Characters take on a life of their own. They can change their minds in a hurry, which can in turn influence the direction a novel takes.

I’d also like to posit that life is that way as well. I’m specifically thinking of my day job where we’re in the process of launching a new funding program. Early on, we discovered that trying to think of the entire process at once wasn’t achieving anything. Now, we work out the next step, and we move forward. If we keep at it, we’ll achieve the goals of this program.

I also have two friends who started their own non-profit. I remember what the husband said to my husband and me one time. “If you asked me to duplicate how we got this up and running, I literally could not tell you the steps to duplicate it. All God has asked is that we be faithful to the next step.” Read, go as far as the “headlights” from God shows them. That’s exactly what they’ve done, and the work they’ve accomplished has benefitted many people.

His statement as well as Doctorow’s quote point to a common problem. We want control over our lives, part of that being that we want to achieve goals. It’s not bad to have those desires. Not at all. But we want to do it our way.

We want that light illuminating our path to reveal the destination and all of the plans we have to reach that destination. When it doesn’t happen our way, we react. We can get angry. Anxious. Fearful.

I know. I’m guilty as charged on that. I had my life mapped out, but then God had other ideas in mind. When I graduated graduate school, I wanted what lots of other women want. A great job right out of school. A husband. Kids. And I planned. It’s a gift, but I realized I was taking it too far and mapping out my life without consulting God.

As I’ve gotten some years on me, I’ve seen my life veer in directions I never anticipated. I’ve come to see that yes, it’s good to have goals, but it’s best to invite God into those plans. He has the final destination in mind whereas I only need to see forward to the edge of the headlights.

And one day, I’ll get to those goals and find God’s blessings along the way.

What about you? I’m sure you have goals you desire to reach. Have you invited God to show you the path forward?

If not, there’s no better time than today to take a moment and ask him to guide your steps simply to the next step.

He’s faithful and will guide you. Promise.

Question: What is a goal of yours, and how have you invited God into the process of reaching that goal?