Recalculating Route

I recently attended a Relief Society Women’s Conference. The speaker recounted an experience about driving in a foreign city on vacation. She had rented a car that had a GPS navigation system. The friendly voice in the system directed her to a destination by telling her which streets, exits, and turns to take. There were several times when she did not follow the directions and missed a turn. The voice inside the system remained friendly. It did not shout or curse at her, “You stupid driver. You missed the turn back there!” It simply and kindly said “recalculating route” and found a new way for her to get back on her original course.

There is a great lesson to be learned from the simple statement, “recalculating route”. In life, there are often times that we get off our original course. There can be many causes of this: death of a loved one, financial burdens, loss of employment, divorce, sin, and many others. Most of these are things we cannot control.

Often we get off course simply because we stop moving forward. When this happens it usually just takes a small push and we gain our momentum and get moving again. The push could be in the form of a phone call from a friend, an inspiring talk in sacrament meeting, or simply an answer to earnest prayer. Regardless of the reason for our momentary lack in progress, it is important to realize that we are not on the right track . . . pause . . . evaluate . . . and decide to make a change.

Another thing can happen when we are standing still. Sometimes a small push will send us in the wrong direction—into the path of sin. Sin is something we ultimately can control, and it often leads us way off our original course. If you have traveled down the path of sin, it is never too late to recalculate your route. The way back will likely not be easy, the path could be riddled with holes. Sometimes it may seem easier to pick a different destination. But, no other path and no other destination will bring the ultimate reward of arriving where you originally planned to go.

I know when I left my Heavenly Father and came to this earth, I planned to do everything I could to follow the path that would lead me back to Him. I’ve taken a few detours and fallen off the path several times. But each time, through the light of the Saviors love, I’ve made the choice to evaluate where I am and get back on the correct path. I’m sure the detours I will take throughout my life are not over, but through the atonement I know that if I fall away from the correct path, there is always a way back—Christ will not leave you by the wayside.

If you’ve taken the wrong path, listen to your internal navigation system. The light of Christ will softly and safely help you find the way. Recalculate your route and get off the destructive path of sin which can only lead to a dead end road. The end of your path may seem too far away to concern you now. But you never know, your end could be looming right around the next bend. Recalculate your route and turn around. It might be the most important turn you ever take.