‘The Lord said to me, ‘You have been travelling around this mountain country long enough. Turn northward.”’ Deuteronomy 2:2–3 ESV

A biologist experimented with what he called ‘processional caterpillars’. He lined up caterpillars on the rim of a pot that held a plant so that the lead caterpillar was head-to-tail with the last caterpillar, with no break in the parade. The tiny creatures walked around the rim of the pot for a full week before they died of exhaustion and starvation. Not once did any of them break out of line and venture over to the plant to eat. Food was only centimetres away, but their follow-the-crowd instinct was stronger than the drive to eat and survive.

The same thing happened to an entire generation of Israelites. They walked in circles in the wilderness for 40 years, even though they were less than 20km from the Promised Land. If you’re in a rut today, ask yourself these three questions:

(1) Is this rut of my own making? We choose a rut because it’s comfortable and requires no risk. And getting out of it requires courage and a willingness to make tough choices you follow through on.

(2) Who am I following? We adopt certain patterns because someone has taught them to us directly, or by example. Instead of mindlessly following the crowd, seek God’s will for your life and commit yourself to doing it.

(3) Where am I going? The Bible says, ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish.’ (Proverbs 29:18 KJV) If you want to get out of the rut you’re in today, ask God to give you a vision for your life—He will! And when He does, pour yourself into it.

SoulFood: Phil 3:8–14, 2 Cor 5:14–21, Ps 77:11–20, Pr 9:10–12

The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright ©