“The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night.”

Exodus 13:21 (nlt)

For Meditation.
Who said the GPS is an invention of our day? Before the world knew about digital direction and threw the paper map away, God had used His unique model to direct His people in their journey from Egypt to Canaan. The GPS of today is nice and very convenient, but, unlike that of God, it has its limitations. 
I remember the day my friend invited me to his new house in a newly developed neighborhood, deep in the woods of Maryland. I set the route on the GPS of my daughter’s Highlander and set off to some uplifting Christian music. My GPS companion and I did very well until we left the older developments and entered the wooded area. The houses thinned out and the landmarks became sketchy and sparse. Soon, the map lost signal and the directional voice went dead. I was lost in a strange environment. Fear began to creep in. Yes, you guessed right. I began to pray. To make matters worse, I couldn’t place a WhatsApp call from that remote place, and I had no American mobile number to call my friend for help. I was really lost. 
Israel started her Liberty March from Succoth in Egypt towards the Promised Land with shouts of joy and much booty. “The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud and He provided light at night with the pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night” (Exodus 13:21). 
Instead of the three-day route across the Sanai, the Lord took them south by the desert road towards the Red Sea. Sometimes, your GPS takes you on local roads that make the trip longer to avoid traffic on the major highways. That’s exactly what God’s GPS did to the Israelites (17-18). 
Suddenly, they had a problem. Heaven’s GPS had taken them to the Red Sea with mountains to their right and left sides and with six hundred of Egypt’s best chariots and horsemen closing in on them from the rear. “What do we do, Lord? Where do we go from here?” 
Remember my Maryland experience? But God’s GPS is not like that of the world. It has features no earthly GPS can ever have. It is not limited by terrain nor satellite signal. It has protective features when you find yourself in a bind. It moved from the front of the Israelites’ caravan and blocked the enemy army from attacking them. It provided light for the Israelites on one side, and a thick cloud to blind the Egyptians, bringing them to a halt. With the enemy cut off, the sophisticated mapping feature of the heavenly GPS created a highway through the sea by generating a strong wind that whipped the waters to attention like dry walls on both sides of the highway in the sea. The Israelites crossed over to safety, while the enemy drowned when God pulled His GPS away from them.
So, I learned my lesson well after my Maryland debacle. I learned that I should have consulted my heavenly GPS, who would have revealed the limitations of the vehicle’s GPS in that remote area. Not only that, the Lord would have given me the wisdom to know where to stop and place a call before I lost satellite signal. 
As Solomon says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” (Prov. 3:5-6). He will lead you to your destination without leaving you stranded in a no man’s land.