This picture was taken recently on a trip back home to Mississippi. It is a familiar road I traveled many times as a young girl with my parents. It leads to a place I still call home after all these years. For most of my life, this road was a dusty, dirt road.

I remember walking down the old dirt road with a hound dog by my side who would not leave me alone. I cried all the way to my Grandmother’s arms, where she sat with me in her lap and patted the old dog, showing me that he was just playing and meant no harm. I remember how secure her lap felt at such a terrifying moment to a 3-year-old.

As the road winds around, passing my grandparent’s old home place, then just ahead is the church where my family has worshiped for generations. It is the place where I experienced many life moments, including weddings, funerals, and Sunday church services.

There is a cemetery where I see headstones etched with birth and death dates for many of my ancestors. Beside each gravesite, countless tears of grief have soaked the ground for generations.

Built into the hillside along the side of the road, I remember a tornado shelter where as a young girl I sat inside, surrounded by family as we waited for the storm to pass. The lanterns cast a warm glow on the sturdy dirt walls that offered protection from the storm around us. I felt no fear of the storms howling around us.

So many have traveled this road through the years, leaving us with their stories of days long ago. I remember my dad telling of the first time he saw a car drive down this road. He told this story so many times; it is as if I was there with him. I see it clearly even today! He was walking with his mother. When she saw the car, a new invention to her and probably most others in this rural Mississippi area (this was in the 1920s), she pulled him into the ditch on the side of the road, covering and protecting him with her body.  They were on the same peaceful road they had walked many times, but on that day something unknown entered their world.

This morning I awoke in the early morning hours, long before the sun came up, praying for guidance and direction for someone I love very much. As I prayed, my spirit filled with the knowledge that God is leading. He is guiding. He will show the way even when the path seems uncertain. “We don’t have to know where we are going as long as we know God is leading.”

As I prayed, I thought of how my Mississippi road symbolizes life. Change happens. At times, unknown and uncertain things come into our path. It would be easy to throw ourselves in the ditch and submit our hearts to fear. But God wants us to keep walking. Keep trusting. Keep following as He leads. Just as my Grandmother did many years ago, God will provide the cover and protection we need at just the right time. Our job? Keep going. Never quit. Do not be overcome with fear. Live life trusting God for the curves in the road, knowing that He is in control.

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” Psalm 32:8 (NKJV)

The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.  I will advise you and watch over you.” Psalm 32:8 (NLT)