In the Beginning

I did it! I was brave, too. Yep… I let YouTube talk me into thinking I was a hair stylist again (go ahead and laugh). You know you’ve watched YouTube tutorials before and fully believed that you could conquer the world. YouTube will have you fixing your plumbing, cooking a 5-piece gourmet meal, and building a 17-bedroom house with twelve bathrooms LOL!

Anyhoo… I watched this hair twist tutorial like 3 times before I attempted it. It looked easy enough, so I went to the beauty supply store and purchased the stuff I needed and went home.

Now, in this particular tutorial, the instructor tells us to twist each section to the right to tighten around the hair, then continue twisting to the right. One simple instruction… “always twist to the right.”

What did I do, you ask? Well, I twisted each section to the right, then began twisting to the left. Now, understandably, I did this when I first began because it didn’t click. But, my problem came in when I continued making the same mistake. Three different times, I twisted to the right, then again, then continued to the left. Once I twisted to the left, it loosened the beginning of my twists. This caused the entire hairdo to be ruined. I became frustrated with getting it wrong. I quit at least 7 times in the first three minutes.

Don’t Get Stuck in the Middle

How many times have we started off “right” – and gone left? We get the foundation set and start down the path and then take that wrong turn – though we’ve heard the directions numerous times. I mean, I definitely heard her say “always twist right” and I definitely did not follow her instructions.

There are bound to be times when things just don’t click. Even in Kirk Franklin’s, Now Behold The Lamb, one of the verses says “I went left, You told me to go right.”

This is true for so many of us in so many situations. And naturally, we get frustrated with ourselves and the circumstances we are surrounded by. I know I do. And, I threaten to quit and give it all up. It’s okay to admit it.

So, What’s the Play Call?

We’re human. We aren’t perfect. God does not expect us to be, in fact, He knows when we will slip up. The key is not to be like me while starting my homemade hairdo, and “continue” going in the wrong direction. Here are a few things to help you detour back to your “right”:

1. Let the Holy Spirit be your GPS. Always seek God on which direction to go and what path to take. “And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went; and they turned not when they went.” Ezekiel 1:12
2. Just Ask. Often, when driving, I am leery of asking strangers for directions. Well, God is no stranger and He is waiting to lead you. “Shew me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths.” Psalms 25:4
3. Stop following your heart. I know… I know… who am I to tell you not to follow your heart. Just look at it this way, our hearts are what must be changed by God and our hearts are also what cause us to get into many of the sticky situations that we find ourselves in. “My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever.” Psalms 73:26
4. Fully trust and follow God. We may get off track, but we can always trust Him to get us where we should be. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5

One thing I want you to remember – no matter how many lefts you take, if you look to God, He will always lead you right.