Paths

It is helpful to know where you are and where you are going.  It is in asking that we discover what is already of fact.  It is in seeking a reference point that we grasp the opportunity to plot a true course.  It is in sharing the journey that we open ourselves up to the many different voices of God.
It is difficult to follow someone who does not know where they are or how to get to where they want to be.  Candidly, one has no idea what will happen next!  The red pick-up on South Street was clearly lost.  Between trying to turn right into a one-way street the wrong way, to stopping without notice in the middle of the street where there were no parking spaces, to weaving across multiple lanes, he was an accident in the making!  I had no idea what was the best way I could prevent myself from being drawn into his impending accident.  The only solution was to slow down, give him plenty of space, and then cautiously go around when the opportunity presented itself.
I wish I could have helped.  I could have easily explained the rules of the streets.  The neighborhood is not hard to navigate once you have a few instructions.  Everything could have be straight forward, only there was no opportunity.
We have an obligation to each other.  I like that.  When I am off course, if you do not tell me then who will?  When I am confused, if you do not take the time to sit down and dialogue then who will?  When my life is at risk, if you do not help then who will?
A prophet commented on the obvious.  “You take stones from the creek and set up your sex-and-religion shrines.  You've chosen your fate.  Your worship will be your doom.”  (Isaiah 57.6)  I wonder if the individual was listening.
God is talking to us about our paths.  It is a conversation that only comes when one is willing to hear.  Until that moment, we will walk blind.