Not All Those Who Wander

“Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost”

I usually talk to graduates about the quotation, “All that is gold does not glitter; not all those who wander are lost” (J. R. R. Tolkien from The Fellowship of the Ring). I usually concentrate on the first half, advising them not to judge by what they see on the surface, but God has given me a new revelation in the second half of the quote: 

“Not all those who wander are lost.”

When “Bible readers” consider “wandering,” thoughts usually go straight to (Who else?) the Israelites. Let’s peruse one passage:

Deut. 29 “These are the terms of the covenant the Lord commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb.

“Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them:

“Your eyes have seen all that the Lord did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land. With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those signs and great wonders. But to this day the Lord has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear. Yet the Lord says, ‘During the forty years that I led you through the wilderness, your clothes did not wear out, nor did the sandals on your feet …“‘When you reached this place, Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan came out to fight against us, but we defeated them. We took their land and gave it as an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

“‘Carefully follow the terms of this covenant, so that you may prosper in everything you do. All of you are standing today in the presence of the Lord your God—your leaders and chief men, your elders and officials, and all the other men of Israel, together with your children and your wives, and the foreigners living in your camps who chop your wood and carry your water. You are standing here in order to enter into a covenant with the Lord your God, a covenant the Lord is making with you this day and sealing with an oath, to confirm you this day as his people, that he may be your God as he promised you and as he swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. I am making this covenant, with its oath, not only with you who are standing here with us today in the presence of the Lord our God but also with those who are not here today.

“‘You yourselves know how we lived in Egypt and how we passed through the countries on the way here. You saw among them their detestable images and idols of wood and stone, of silver and gold. Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations; make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison.’”

Not all those who wander are lost.

Don’t make decisions based on the world, but on the covenant God has made with you. Deuteronomy was rooted in the Old Covenant–the law. When you asked Jesus into your heart to be your Lord and Savior, you entered into a New Covenant with Him–grace:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

In the context of salvation, God’s new covenant involves a two-way contract. God provides grace, mercy, and blessings through Christ, while each individual is expected to respond in obedience and faith. God loves everyone He has ever created unconditionally. His love is offered to all, and everyone’s salvation is bought and paid for. However, each individual must respond to Him out of the measure of faith that he or she has been given. Those who do not receive Him by faith sadly have no claim to His promises. This new covenant highlights God’s commitment to providing for humanity and humanity’s role in receiving and responding to that provision.

Does being saved by faith guarantee that you will never wander? I would respond with an emphatic nope! Students very often enter college without a plan, which is not necessarily a bad thing. They take core classes and wander about academically until something clicks. Sometimes those who go in with a plan wander into something they like more. People wander into and out of relationships, living arrangements, places, and even medical issues–life-altering things! Decades ago, people seemed to take a job and stay in that same job for an entire lifetime until retirement. Life is not like it once was, years ago. I knew one lady (elderly by the time I met her) who became a seamstress in the bridal department in Wheeling, WV before she finished high school and worked in that same department of that same store until she retired. I know a number of men who worked in the coal mines or steel mills the same way. It is nearly unheard of in the present day. Now I know many people who go through many “careers” before they find the one that fits. It is even possible to wander in our faith. This is not an exhaustive list. In life, sometimes wandering happens.

The good news here is that when one has a relationship with Jesus Christ, He leads and guides through all the wandering, and also provides. Metaphorically, your clothes [will] not wear out, nor [will] the sandals on your feet. I mean, if He can keep clothes and sandals well, He can keep you, too.

Not all those who wander are lost.

Sometimes folks are just trying to find the place where their gifts and callings are used, and where they feel led by the Holy Spirit. Sometimes they wander until they end up exactly where God wants them.

Phil. 4:19 states the promise: “My God will meet all your needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus.” In John 14:6, Jesus promises, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” When Christ is your guide; you need not fear wandering in the wilderness. He’s leading you right where you need to be.

May the Lord bless you and keep you in your times of wandering.