Wrong Numbers

“Jesus told him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.'”

John 14:6

“Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.”

Matthew 24:11

Over the course of a week, I received multiple phone calls from a woman I didn’t know. She had gotten a new cell phone and was adamant that she was calling her husband. I would politely tell her that she had the wrong number, but she would insist that the guy at the store had put her husband’s number in her phone.

I told her, “You need to go back to the store and have the number changed.”

But she would continue to push that contact on her phone and expect a different response. She said, “I need to talk to my husband!”

As calmly as possible, I replied, “No matter how many times you call this number, I will not turn into your husband.” She finally seemed to understand and has not called me since!

Later, during one of my first attempts to use the voice commands on my phone, to call my son, it dialed a different contact with the same first name. It was a man at the music store where my son takes lessons. I hung up quickly, believing that the call had not gone through. Then, I missed his return call. I texted to explain what had happened and also thanked him for choosing my son’s piano teacher. He replied with, “No problem,” and went on to explain how they work hard to choose the best teacher for each student.

We all reach a wrong number sometimes. When this happens, we can be a blessing by apologizing and sharing a kind word before saying goodbye.

Other times, we dial the wrong number or head in the wrong direction. We may truly believe that we have it right. We keep going back to find what we need or connect with someone we believe can help us. But once we realize that this is not the person or place where we need to be, it’s time to turn around, apologize, and stop going back.

There are times when we put our trust in worldly things. We think some new program, more money or a new job or friend, will be the answer to fulfilling our needs. So we keep dialing into the latest craze even when we don’t get what we needed or expected. In reality, we get our direction and guidance from the Lord. Let’s remember to call on Him and to listen for His voice.

PRAYER:
Dear Lord,
Thank You for providing us with all that we need. Help us not to get caught up in wrong connections and relationships. Help us to see the missteps and come back to You.
In Christ’s name, Amen.

Journal: When have you trusted in something or someone and started going in the wrong direction? How have you dialed back into the Lord? Are there areas where you need to listen more closely to Him?

Photo by Paul Hoenhorst on Unsplash