An Interrupted Journey

Recently, I had cause to ponder upon a passage which I had previously written a post on, and in that post, I paid attention to the two men that embarked on a journey. In this post, I’ll turn my attention to the journey itself.

[13] And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs.

[14] And they talked together of all these things which had happened.

[15] And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.

Luke 24:13-15 (KJV)

This was happening in the immediate hours of the post resurrection appearance of Jesus Christ, following the events that culminated in His crucifixion.

Their story arc suggests that they had been in and around Jerusalem in those final days, and were possibly first hand witnesses of the sufferings of Christ.

Now, on this fateful day, they made a decision to embark on a journey back from Jerusalem. Cleopas probably left his wife behind in the company of the other women and intended perhaps to go back home with another disciple after what has been a harrowing few days.

Notice the direction of their movements; they were going from Jerusalem to Emmaus. This is very important. I believe it accounts for one of the reasons Jesus Himself had to interrupt their journey.

And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

Luke 24:49 (KJV)

Jerusalem was the place to be. A promise was at stake. This is a future date they must not miss – they couldn’t afford to be anywhere else but Jerusalem. However, these men were already about 12km far in the wrong direction, they had undertaken a journey away from the center point of purpose. Jesus had to step in.

This also plays out in our lives.

Sometimes, due to misunderstandings, due to the pressure of circumstances or a lack of clarity, we can take our journey albeit sincerely away from the center of that which God intends for us. We can be years deep, we could have undertaken all kinds of well meaning projects and so on, and yet each step progressively takes us away from where God wants us to be.

But He loves us too much to leave us alone. His purpose is too important to be at the mercy of our misgivings and disappointments. So, what does He do?

He steps, in as though uninvited, unsolicited. He steps in, in ways that do not initaily appear to us, in ways we do not expect and starts to initiate a course correction protocol.

He stirs our hearts, He brings us clarity, He brings understanding, He prods our hearts. He speaks to us and opens His word to us. He does all these because He desires that our lives are lived consistently under His influence and government.

He doesn’t want our relationship with Him to be relevant only for historical purposes.

There is a place we ought to be. We should not allow circumstances and happenings move us away. We should also recognize that God has the liberty to interrupt our journeys for His Glory.

For those who have embarked on journeys away from where they should be, who have moved in directions not consistent with the divine pattern, God is able to interrupt your journeys and set you right on track.

Only call upon Him and check again to be sure that you are on the right path.