Ahhh, it’s that time of year again—when we all brave the highways and byways in search of the family vacation. But along with vacations comes the need to travel unfamiliar territory, which certainly can have it’s ups and downs.

I know the feeling. A few years back, we borrowed a GPS device to take with us on our vacation out west. We live just outside of St. Louis, Missouri, and on the first leg of our journey we had to leave rather late in the day. So by the time we hit Kansas City (where we wanted to stop for the night) it was well past midnight.

Unfortunately, thanks to our GPS device, it was also at that point that we made several wrong turns! But that didn’t seem to deter my husband’s gadget compulsion. So he kept punching commands into it and requesting new directions, only to be given worse and worse advice by some British sounding woman who probably had no clue about American streets anyway!

I, on the other hand, was exhausted and wanted to simply follow the directions that the billboards were giving us toward the closest hotel. And when my husband seemed to favor listening to the voice of the only other woman in our car, I was not pleased to say the least!

I think it was at that point that I began to call the other woman (which was our borrowed Tom-Tom device), “Dena Dumb-Dumb.” Needless to say, the GPS did not enhance our traveling experience! (I suppose, neither did my new name for the GPS device! But that’s a subject for a future post.)

Here’s my point – often in messy marriages, we listen to “voices” that lead us astray. It might be the voice of the media that whispers that fidelity is boring or unnecessary. Or it might be the voice of our appetites that lead us into debt or keep us expecting perfection from our spouses. Or it might be the voice of our insecurity that tells us to hide who we are from our spouses. Or it might be the voice of our feelings that steer us wrong when trials come to visit—and sometimes stay.

But – there is an infallible compass for our lives and it is only found in Christ.

I know this from first-hand experience. When I put Christ at the center of my life—focusing solely on Him—I am able to stay on track in my marriage. He leads me in the right direction. But the moment I listen to those “other voices” I find myself making marriage messes and ultimately losing my way.