Watching the signs...... or not!

Today I had the experience of driving into Chicago.  And I mean INTO the LOOP!  Anyone who knows me will tell you that I do not often DRIVE into the city.  But today I was able to take Ken to a conference that he has been looking forward to for a long time.  He had way too many bags to take the train....hence the trip!  It was raining... of course.  And the street that the hotel is on had sewer work, so it was closed.  So I had to take a different street.  Which led me to another street that had this sign exactly where I needed to turn left....

So I had to go a couple of streets further in order to make that left turn.  And then I ran into a few streets with this sign........

 

And again, unfortunately I wanted to turn LEFT onto streets that were one way with a RIGHT HAND turn!  So, I followed the signs and finally made it to the street that I needed to be on to EXIT the city!  Not a totally uneventful trip, but close!  I managed by following the signs! (I was driving my car which does NOT have navigation, sadly.)

I was thinking about how hard I needed to watch the signs and make sure I was in the right lane  and following all of those pesky traffic rules.  And I remembered something that I saw yesterday on my phone........

Look closely at this picture.  It is a screen shot of the weather page from my phone YESTERDAY - June 25, 2015.  Look at the forecast at the bottom of the picture.  FLURRIES OR SNOW SHOWERS POSSIBLE EARLY???????????   Obviously, you can not always believe or follow everything that you read.  With the weather it is always better to stick your head out the door or window and look at sky and feel the temperature.  But as you can see, it was 81 degrees with a predicted low of 60, so the potential for snow was ZERO!  So you can't always follow what your see with your eyes...........at least not what you see on the internet!

It's true that you always have to make a decision about those signs around you.  Are they real?  Is that road actually closed or is that just a left over sign from last week?  With all those dark clouds out there, should you bring an umbrella?

You have to be very careful what signs you follow.  But Jesus gave some very clear direction to us about signs.......  Mark 16:17  "And these signs will  accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons, they will speak in new tongues, they will pick up snakes with their hands, and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all, they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."    And as you read further in the New Testament, Acts is full of these kind of "signs" as the Apostles spread the Good News of Jesus.  Isn't it interesting that we don't always look for these signs today?  Even though Jesus clearly left the instructions for us to follow?   I am thankful that I have been surrounded by people who are looking for signs to follow them as they walk with Jesus.  In this all, the most important thing, is to be listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit and to Jesus as you walk (or drive) through your days.  That is the sign that we all need to follow.  The sign that really matters the most.  The minute by minute leading of the Holy Spirit as we walk through each day.

I love when I have days like today.  I can look back and see and appreciate how the Holy Spirit helped to guide me through my day today.  There were signs and I knew which ones I needed to follow.  And I was reminded to listen carefully to the voice of Jesus.

Jesus, thank you for reminding me to listen carefully to you!  Holy Spirit, thank you for those nudges that steer us away from danger and keep us on the right path (or road).   Help us to listen to your voice, to expect those guiding directions, and to watch for those signs from those around us.  Open our spirits to expect signs and wonders and miracles!  And Jesus, bless Ken and all that are attending that conference this weekend!  Amen