Wilderness

Exodus 13:17 "When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”
This is one of those verses that you just read and not think that much about.  During my study of this verse, I was surprised at what I found.  God didn't take the Hebrew people out of Egypt the way that they thought He should or the way they thought would be easier.  He took them a different path through the wilderness because He knew their hearts, something they didn't know about themselves.  God knew that if they went the way that seemed easier to them, they would experience something that God knew they couldn't handle.
So many times in my life, I find myself wondering why God didn't make things turn out the way that I wanted them to be.  As I look back through my life, most of the time I see that it was for the better.  The times when I can't see, I have to trust by faith that His ways are not my own (Isaiah 55:8) and He knows the big picture!
I have had to ask myself this question: With comforts left behind me and the wilderness before me, will I follow God even if the way seems difficult? Or will I strive to have my own plan work out and miss what God is doing in my heart?
How about you?