You crown the year with your bounty;
your wagon tracks overflow with abundance. Psalm 65:11
Are you in a rut?
Wagon tracks are only made when the same route is taken again and again and again. The wheels slowly crushes all vegetation under it down to the roots, and squishes the dirt into a hard-packed surface. Nothing can grow there because of the constant pressure back and forth, over and over. If rains come, the water puddles in the track and stays there, but just briefly. Birds and animals may find it a temporary watering hole, but it soon dries back into that packed down, growth-less dirt.
There are times when my spiritual life feels that way. Life keeps crushing any chance for me to grow. The day in and day out routines become fruitless and I move along the same beaten path almost on auto pilot, day after day after day. Even Sundays can become part of the routine. A hymn we sing, or the words of a sermon, or a hug from a friend may break through the doldrums. I may briefly feel the love of Christ surround me. When God’s grace and mercy rains down, I may be a temporary blessing for some, but soon I feel dried up and growth-less again.
But the psalmist says that God fills in the wagon tracks with His abundance. Actually, God does that daily. I just have a tendency to squish it down and track over it with my routines. I do not stop to count my blessings, or ask if this path is the way I should be going, or notice the little miracles in my peripheral vision as I trudge along. Have you ever sat in the passenger seat and watched as you zip down a road you usually drive down? Just a small shift in seating can make it look so different. You have time to notice things off to the side instead of concentrating on what may be ahead. Look at that. I didn’t know that tree was there. I had never noticed that neighbor’s gorgeous roses before. How long has that shop been there? Really ?
Perhaps, I am afraid to leave the comfort of theses well worn tracks and venture just a bit off this path called my life . But that may be what God is calling me to do. That way, I can shift my perspective just a bit, and see His hand in it all. If I move over just a smidgen, not only will my life view shift, but He can begin to fill in the ruts with His abundant blessings.
God may not be calling you to something outlandish or brand new. Just a slight shift in your direction so you can see things you may be missing. Perhaps, like me, you need to veer just a bit off your beaten path enough to notice His blessings all around.
