Last summer, my boys and I took some memorable bike rides. One path that runs alongside a local river became the boys’ favorite. There are numerous spots to stop, toss their helmets aside, and explore along the riverbank. Their most celebrated discovery was a pool of tadpoles. In contrast to my boys, I don’t like to stop while riding, and I don’t search for tadpoles. I like to travel a direct route there and back. For Wyatt and Seth, however, biking is as much about the detours as the destination.
In the opening chapters of Ephesians, Paul penned a breathless array of words and images, themes, and ideas—rich theology, gushing and overflowing. However, as chapter 3 begins, Paul slows down, pauses, and writes down a prayer: “When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles . . .” (Ephesians 3:1). And that three-dot ellipsis sends us on a journey.
Paul had barely finished a line of his prayer when he headed in a different direction, a long rabbit trail. You have to trace down 13 verses to find Paul resuming his first-sentence thoughts. Most translators, aware of this disjointed shift, mark it with a dash or an ellipsis— attempts to communicate that Paul had taken a detour.
It’s interesting that as Paul veered onto this literary side road, he pointed to God’s penchant for detours. Paul recounted how God had “revealed His mysterious plan” during his blinding encounter with God on the Damascus road. This ordained diversion with Jesus had not been on Paul’s agenda (Ephesians 3:3). Paul then detailed another seeming detour—God’s merging of Jews and Gentiles had been something neither people group had expected (Ephesians 3:6). A monumental detour.
Grace often comes unexpectedly. Detours, surrendered to God, are not inconveniences—they’re gifts.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Esther 5:1-14
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More:
Look over Ephesians 3:1-13 again. Notice how the characters were surprised by God’s actions. How were the Gentiles surprised? The Jews? Paul? What does the idea of “mystery” in the passage say about God’s detours?
Next:
Where are you most set on your own agenda and most resistant to the detours God might want you to take? How might God be at work in your life amid the detours?
lindagma on May 6, 2011 at 5:45 am
I had a meeting with another author…a 3 1/2 hour drive away. I made plans to stay over-night with my granddaughter and her family. She has 2 1/2 yr old twin girls. With the girls down for a nap, we had a couple of hours to just visit and catch up. The next day, we took the girls to the beach and then to lunch at a lovely place with a marvelous view of the beach. Since both of our birthdays are in May, we celebrated with a decadent desert to share. What started out to be a long trip, turned out to be a precious time invested that will be a treasure to us both.
winn collier on May 6, 2011 at 6:14 am
That’s a beautiful story. I’m going to hope for a few detours of that caliber…
eppistle on May 6, 2011 at 8:06 am
As we grow old, we often lose our sense of wander. In our attempts to be efficient and pragmatic, we think we need to stay on schedule and think of rabbit trails as a waste of time. But perhaps it’s God’s Spirit luring us down that trail and if we wander down we will discover a God worthy of our awestruck wonder.
winn collier on June 28, 2011 at 8:41 pm
This connects with one of my favorite lines from a Wendell Berry poem:
Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.
mike wittmer on May 6, 2011 at 8:18 am
Thanks for this biblical perspective, Winn. You reminded me that sometimes what seems like a detour from where we stand–e.g., the merging of Jew and Gentile in Jesus–is actually God’s destination! I wonder how many times that happens in our lives, and we are too anxious and impatient about our perceived roadblock to notice.
daisymarygoldr on May 6, 2011 at 10:35 am
Very well said! Detours are gifts and happy people are those who can enjoy them. On road trips, my husband gets wild with excitement whenever we are forced to exit the highway and take an alternate route. His adventurous spirit loves all those crazy unexpected bends, bumps, dips and forks. And I am just the opposite. I don’t like detours especially if it takes me along “mysterious” paths. Detours are dotted with danger, discomfort and delay. But then, they are there for our safety. Maybe it was from a flooded road or a washed out bridge.
God’s way is a detour from our ways. What we see as detours is actually His divine plan to lead us safely to our destination. When we know the road like the back of our hand, then we don’t feel the need for God. It is only when we travel life’s unfamiliar territories, we learn to depend on Him for the right direction.
In my life there have been so many detours. There were delays in getting admission to the right school, finding the right job and the right man. Coming and staying in this country was totally off course. As a teenager I had given my word to God to go wherever He leads me to. And my plans included places like Africa and China. Both my husband and I had never thought of coming to America even in our wildest imaginations. And this is the place we are living in today.
Whether it is an unforeseen relocation, sickness, job loss, economic downturn, divorce or death of a loved one, detours are opportunities—to experience the loving hand of God graciously providing for and faithfully protecting us from something that is more dangerous.
Sometimes life takes us through strange routes that have us questioning whether we are really doing God’s will. We must trust God. Israel’s wilderness detour (Exo 13:17-18) always encourages me whenever I encounter those scary twists and turns that suddenly appear in my life’s journey. Thanks winn collier for reminding me of God’s unexpected grace!
GChoo on May 7, 2011 at 9:30 am
I feel so blessed with the devotion and all your sharing. What was said seemed so true in my life as well. When i looked back, i can definitely say that God has been with me all along and i know He will be there for us forever. What a wonderful God we have. Thank you God.
janmacy on June 28, 2011 at 8:28 pm
This is so good. Thanks to God for your sharing.
I was looking for a quote that I had heard last night on the radio. This post came up. God knew I needed this today.
The quote was something like “the detours can often be the most important part of our journey. ” Except I liked it better than what I’m recalling.
You are so right. We usually view detours as a negative. In so doing, we can miss so much.
I’ve had some rather unpleasant detours in my life. My 16 y/o son died. 20 years later (5 years ago) my husband is attacked on our property by a poacher and left for dead in the night. The doctors can not figure out how he survived.
These were definite detours in my life. But – looking back I can see all the wonderful people that are now in my life because of our experiences. I can see how parents who have had a child die will come running toward us in the funeral home because they know that we know! It’s a ministry. God comforted us so that we in turn can comfort. We never could have done that without the detour.
God bless you.
winn collier on June 28, 2011 at 8:42 pm
I’m so sorry for the pain you’ve experienced in your family, but I’m thankful for God’s kindness toward you as well. Peace.