You’re Going the Wrong Way

“There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.” — Proverbs 14:12, NKJV

Direction matters.

Not just speed.

Direction.

Because you can be moving slowly and still be going the wrong way.

You can feel calm, look composed, and still be headed toward danger.

You can be making progress, staying busy, and checking things off the list, but if you are moving in the wrong direction, all that movement is still taking you farther away from where you need to be.

I learned that in a very real way on September 5, 2026.

I was driving on a one-way road, going in the correct direction, when I saw a car coming toward me head-on.

They were not speeding.

They were not swerving.

They were not driving recklessly.

They were simply going the wrong way.

And sometimes that is exactly how life works.

We think danger has to be loud.

We think it has to look chaotic.

We think it has to feel obviously wrong.

But sometimes danger looks calm.

Sometimes danger moves slowly.

Sometimes danger says, “I’m fine.”

Sometimes danger says, “I know what I’m doing.”

The issue was not how fast that driver was going.

The issue was direction.

I moved over and flashed my lights because I wanted them to know, “You are going the wrong way.”

And behind me was a hill.

That driver could not see what might be coming over that hill, but I knew another car could come at any moment, traveling the correct direction.

That is when it hit me.

How many times is God flashing the lights at us?

How many times is He trying to get our attention?

How many times is He saying, “Wrong way,” and we keep going because nothing bad has happened yet?

We say, “I’m okay.”

“I’m still praying.”

“I’m still going to church.”

“I’m still functioning.”

But here is the question:

Which direction are you going?

Because we can be traveling God’s highway and still be going the wrong way.

That one might make you sit up a little straighter.

Isaiah 35:8 speaks about a highway called the Highway of Holiness.

And yes, we can be on that highway, around the things of God, connected to church, reading Scripture, serving, praying, and still have our heart moving in the wrong direction.

You can be on God’s highway and still be traveling with worry in the driver’s seat.

You can be on God’s highway and still be full of bitterness.

You can be on God’s highway and still be carrying unforgiveness.

You can be on God’s highway and still be resisting what God told you to do.

You can be on God’s highway and still be trying to control everything.

You can be in the right place with the wrong heart.

Sometimes the road is not the problem.

Sometimes the direction is.

That brings us right into the story of the prodigal son.

Luke 15:11 begins by saying, “A certain man had two sons.”

Two sons.

That matters.

We often talk about the younger son because he left, but there was an older son too, and both sons reveal something about direction.

The younger son asked his father for his portion of the inheritance.

Luke 15:12 says, “So he divided to them his livelihood.”

Notice that.

One son asked, but the father divided to both sons.

That becomes important later because the older son becomes angry when the younger son comes home and is celebrated.

But he had received from the father too.

Sometimes we can get so caught up in what God is doing for somebody else that we forget what He has already placed in our own hands.

Comparison can take you in the wrong direction too.

The younger son eventually leaves.

He goes into a far country.

And at first, everything probably felt fine.

That is the tricky part about the wrong road.

It does not always look dangerous at the beginning.

Sometimes it looks like freedom.

Sometimes it looks like relief.

Sometimes it looks like, “Finally, I can do what I want.”

But the real question is not, “How does this feel right now?”

The real question is, “Where is this taking me?”

Because Proverbs 14:12 says:

“There is a way that seems right to a man…”

It seems right.

That does not mean it is right.

Sometimes our feelings say one thing while God’s direction says another.

Sometimes what makes sense to us is not where God is leading.

Sometimes we are asking God to bless a direction He never told us to take.

We say, “Lord, make this work.”

And God is saying, “Turn around.”

We say, “Lord, give me peace.”

And maybe the reason peace is missing is because we are resisting Him.

We say, “Lord, change them.”

And God says, “I’m talking to you.”

Now that will make us uncomfortable.

But sometimes the answer is not another prayer.

Sometimes the answer is obedience.

The younger son keeps going until eventually the road catches up with him.

He loses everything.

A famine comes.

He ends up feeding pigs.

And Luke 15:17 says:

“But when he came to himself…”

That is powerful.

He came to himself.

He got honest.

Sometimes the turning point in our life is not when our circumstances change.

Sometimes it is when we finally tell ourselves the truth.

“This is not where I belong.”

“This is not the direction God gave me.”

“This worry is costing me too much.”

“This bitterness is costing me too much.”

“This relationship is taking me somewhere I do not need to go.”

“This fear is running my life.”

“I am going the wrong way.”

You cannot change direction if you will not admit you are off course.

Then verse 18 says:

“I will arise and go to my father…”

There it is.

He turned.

He did not just feel bad.

He moved.

That is repentance.

Repentance is not just tears.

It is change.

You can cry and still keep going the wrong way.

You can apologize and keep going the wrong way.

You can say, “I know better,” and still keep going the wrong way.

Eventually, there has to be a turn.

And turning around is not failure.

Turning around may save you.

Turning around may save your peace.

Turning around may save your family.

Turning around may save your relationship.

Turning around may save you from destruction you cannot even see yet.

Remember the hill.

That driver could not see what might be coming.

But I could.

Spiritually, God sees over the hill.

We do not.

We see today.

God sees what is ahead.

We see the opportunity.

God sees the outcome.

We see the closed door.

God sees what was behind it.

We see delay.

God may see protection.

We see inconvenience.

God may see danger.

That is why Proverbs 3:5–6 tells us to trust in the Lord and not lean on our own understanding.

Sometimes we have to say:

“God, I cannot see over the hill, but You can.”

That is trust.

Now here is where the story gets even deeper.

The younger son turns around and comes home.

Luke 15:20 says:

“But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion…”

The father saw him.

He had not forgotten him.

He had not written him off.

He saw him while he was still a great way off.

The son changed direction, and the father responded.

That is hope.

You do not have to fix everything before you turn.

You do not have to clean yourself up first.

You do not have to undo every mistake.

You just need to turn.

There is still a road home.

But the father had another son too.

The older son stayed.

He did not go to the far country.

He did not waste his inheritance.

He did not end up in a pigpen.

Yet when the younger son returned and the father celebrated, the older son became angry.

And suddenly we see another kind of wrong direction.

One son went the wrong way with his feet.

The other went the wrong way in his heart.

The younger son left the house.

The older son stayed near the house but allowed bitterness, resentment, and comparison to settle in.

That is why I say again:

We can be traveling God’s highway and still be going the wrong way.

You can stay close to the house and still have your heart moving away.

You can serve and still be bitter.

You can pray and still be resentful.

You can know Scripture and still be prideful.

You can be physically near the Father and still be far from His heart.

And I love what the father does.

He runs toward the younger son.

Then when the older son refuses to go inside, Luke 15:28 says the father came out and pleaded with him.

The father went out for both sons.

One needed restoration.

One needed correction.

One needed to come back to the house.

The other needed to come back to the father’s heart.

Both mattered.

And both needed direction.

That is the part we cannot miss.

Because sometimes we are so busy looking at the person who left that we do not check our own lane.

We say, “Look at them.”

God says, “Look at you.”

We say, “They are going the wrong way.”

God says, “Check your heart.”

We say, “They need to turn around.”

God says, “So do you.”

Maybe your wrong direction is worry.

Maybe it is stress.

Maybe it is bitterness.

Maybe it is unforgiveness.

Maybe it is fear.

Maybe it is trying to control everything.

Maybe it is delayed obedience.

Maybe it is something God already told you to release.

Maybe you are waiting for another sign when He has already spoken.

Whatever it is, check your direction.

Do not be so focused on staying on the road that you forget to ask which way you are going.

Psalm 119:105 says:

“Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”

The Word gives us direction.

Feelings do not.

Opinions do not.

Fear does not.

Culture does not.

The Word does.

So when your feelings tell you one thing and God’s Word tells you another, follow the Word.

When your fear tells you to stay stuck but God tells you to move, move.

When your pride tells you not to forgive but God says forgive, forgive.

When your anxiety tells you to control everything but God says trust Me, trust Him.

Direction matters.

And sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is simply turn around.

You may not be able to change where you have been.

But you can change where you are going.

You may not be able to undo every consequence.

But you can still change direction.

You may have ignored previous warnings.

But if God is flashing the lights now, there is still time.

There is still grace.

There is still mercy.

There is still a Father watching.

There is still a road home.

So maybe today is not about moving faster.

Maybe it is not about doing more.

Maybe it is simply about asking:

Lord, am I going in Your direction?

Because movement is not enough.

Being on the road is not enough.

Even being on God’s highway is not enough if our heart is headed the wrong way.

Check your direction.

And if God shows you that you are going the wrong way?

Turn around.

God sees over the hill.

Trust Him.

Tonyelle’s Take

Sometimes the biggest problem is not that we stopped moving.

It is that we kept moving in the wrong direction.

Do not confuse movement with obedience. Do not confuse being busy with being aligned. And do not assume that because you are still on God’s highway, your heart cannot drift into the wrong lane.

Check your direction.

If God is flashing the lights, pay attention.

If He is telling you to stop, stop.

If He is telling you to turn, turn.

If He is telling you to release it, let it go.

You do not have to see what is over the hill to trust the One who does.

And remember this: turning around is not defeat.

Sometimes turning around is obedience.

Sometimes turning around is wisdom.

Sometimes turning around is God saving you from something you could not see coming.

There is still time to change direction.

Let’s Pray About It

Father, thank You for loving me enough to guide me and correct me when I am headed in the wrong direction.

Help me not to become so comfortable with movement that I forget to ask whether I am moving toward You.

Show me the areas of my life where worry, fear, pride, bitterness, unforgiveness, stress, control, or disobedience may have caused me to cross into the wrong lane.

Give me the humility to recognize Your warning lights.

When You say stop, help me stop.

When You say turn, help me turn.

When You say wait, help me wait.

And when You say move, give me the courage to move.

Lord, I cannot see what is over every hill, but You can.

So I choose to trust Your direction over my own understanding.

Keep my feet on Your path and my heart moving toward You.

And if I ever find myself going the wrong way, give me enough wisdom to recognize it and enough obedience to turn around.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.