A few months ago, my husband and I moved from Connecticut to south Florida. We now live very close to State Route 704, Okeechobee Boulevard, which has, at some areas, six lanes of traffic, and the traffic can legally go 50 miles per hour. There are many, many businesses on that road, and more malls and plazas off of it. Just about anything is available on or near the boulevard.

As we find our way around this new environment, the GPS (Global Positioning System) on our phones is very helpful. The voice on the device gives us timely notice about changing traffic lanes, road signs to look for, and even routes to avoid. When we arrive back at home, my husband's GPS voice even says, “Welcome home!”

I suggest that GPS can also stand for God Provides Solutions. If we are feeling lost or at a crossroads, our Lord is there to show us the way. There may be a tendency to go to God as a last resort, when all of our human ideas seem to be fruitless. From my experience, God should be our first and constant resort. Unlike the GPS on our charged-up phones, God does not lose his power.

In my life, God lays the groundwork for solutions sometimes quite far in advance. For example, God knew I needed to come closer to him, and so, when my daughter was a teenager and less dependent on me for things, he put a desire in my heart to attend some weekday Masses. A few months after that, the pastor invited me to become a minister of the Eucharist. Yes, that might have helped the pastor fill a need for another minister of the Eucharist who would make home visits to shut-ins and distribute Holy Communion at Masses, but the process also helped me to know my God in a more intimate way.

 God gifts us with various levels of creativity. He helps us solve problems using our own and others’ creative ideas. It is so important to be open to positive creativity, and at the same time, through prayer, to ask God’s opinion of these ideas. What we might label as a lucky coincidence could very well be God’s solution to a life problem. In all of this, patience is so important and not always easy to maintain. Creativity often involves some spontaneity, and that may have to be tempered through prayer as well. We have to trust in God’s wisdom and understanding.

 We can be comforted by many Scripture passages that tell of God’s presence and love. For example:

    Romans 8:28: We know that all things work for good for those who love God,

                           who are called according to his purpose.

     2 Timothy 1:7: For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power

                           and love and self-control.

    Psalm 50:15: Then call upon me in time of distress;

                           I will rescue you, and you shall glorify me.

    Proverbs 3:5: Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

                             on your own intelligence rely not;

                         In all your ways be mindful of him,

                             and he will make straight your paths.

These passages are short enough to memorize and motivate us as we seek solutions to our problems—until we die and go to heaven and hear God say, “Welcome home!”