What If Your Next Trip Is God’s Direction? // 182

Your suitcase is packed, your itinerary is tight, and your mind is already racing ahead to everything that could go wrong. We have been there. That’s why we’re talking about the link between Christian travel and prayer while traveling and how bringing God into the process can change not just your trip, but your peace.

We explore travel and prayer as two journeys that move you in different directions: one across the world and one closer to God. From the first moment a destination pops into your head, we walk through what it looks like to pray for guidance, timing, finances, and whether you should go solo or choose a tour. We also share a real story of wanting to take a specific trip, hitting roadblocks, and realizing God’s answer was “no” and why that can be a gift, not a loss.

If you deal with travel anxiety, we spend time in scripture that speaks directly to it, including Philippians 4:6-7, and we talk about how thanksgiving and continual prayer can guard your mind with a peace that doesn’t depend on perfect plans. We also touch on praying for protection and staying open to hearing God more clearly when you step away from daily noise.

If you want your next trip to be more than a getaway, press play, then subscribe, share this with a friend who loves faith-based travel, and leave a review so more women can find it. What’s the one thing you most need to pray about before you travel?

 Resources & Links
Apply for 1:1 travel coaching with Cheryl:
https://cherylbeckesch.com/workwithme/

Coaching Invitation
If you’re feeling drawn toward solo travel but unsure where to begin, this is something I support women with through 1:1 coaching. Together we can explore what kind of travel experience fits your season of life and create a thoughtful plan that reflects the woman you are becoming.

https://cherylbeckesch.com/workwithme/

Transcript

Why Prayer Belongs In Travel

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Do you find yourself praying more these days? Does it calm your soul to pray to God? Are we as Christians disconnecting our travels from God and ignoring prayer because of that? But the bottom line is, do you pray while you're traveling? And there is a connection. And prayer and travel are connected in more ways than one. One thing is we can actually view both as journeys. And I love that analogy. I love journeys. I love looking at pathways of life and where God is taking us. And travel is a journey in that it moves us physically across the world while prayer moves us closer to God. But they can be done together. And it would be a beautiful union if we really considered that. So praying to God, especially as a solo traveler, gives me someone to talk to. So I'm not looking like I'm crazy and talking to myself, but that does happen sometimes. But I get a chance to talk to God because He is someone who knows me deeply and intimately, understands my feelings, what I'm going through. He sees the situation. He sees everything. He knows everything. And so it gives me comfort to come to him, especially when I'm traveling, for many reasons. And there have been several incidences where God has really guided my steps while traveling. He's protected me in numerous ways. And when we travel, it is a good idea for us to invite God into our travel plans from the inception. Because from the inception, meaning that passion or that desire to go is likely been put there by him. And also he has created you so he knows your personality. He knows what type of places you're going to be drawn to. And so if we go to him in prayer as we're considering a place, and have I always done that? No. But I know when I have, even when I get a thought in my idea of an idea, and I want to pursue it or I want to research it, I have to talk to God. I have to ask him if it is his will that I go. And I know I've shared about a recent desire to want to go to Albania. And, you know, I've been praying about it. I've been wanting to go for, oh, probably the last, I don't know, got the idea probably seven months ago or so. And really thought, oh, I'm gonna make this happen, right? And when I really sat down with it, mainly I sat down with it because I was starting to hit some roadblocks and things weren't going as smoothly as they should have. And when I really sat and asked myself and talked to God about it and inquired, is this what you want me to do or where you want me to go? The answer was no. And so God does answer prayer, by the way. And maybe you haven't heard God answer prayer for you for a while. But if we sit and listen, he does answer, and it may not come right away. Like sometimes I get, sometimes I travail for months on a prayer, but he does always answer, and his answers are either yes, no, or not now. And so we have that hope that he will answer our prayers, he hears our prayers, and there's many scriptures that talk about prayer, but also that you know that God does hear us. Hebrews, I've been reading a lot in Hebrews 4, 16, and it talks about us approaching God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. And so when we go to God in prayer, he does hear us. We are allowed to approach that throne of grace, and he has mercy on us often. So back to praying, he put those desires in us, and he did answer my prayers. I gave that example of Albania, and I was obedient because sometimes can be a little stubborn and want to do it my way, anyways. And I find that just never really works out, and the trip never turns out as expected. So we have to learn to also listen to that, and he will guide us, he's put those passions in us, but to the planning too. What is it that God wants you to do? And will you continually remember him in that process? Even while you are having a blast and living up the life in Paris, what it wherever it is you go or you're laying on the beach somewhere, I think part of connecting with God is to also be have a spirit of gratitude and to be thanking him, but to also be continually praying to him. And mostly when we travel, we often, at least for me, and I'm sure if you hit a road trip with your family, maybe you have prayed and you've had other people maybe pray for safety, safe travels, all that kind of stuff. And that's a real thing. So make sure as you are traveling, whether it is a road trip or a hike or you're flying on an airplane, that you are praying for God's protection and safety because you are his child. So he cares for you. And if we pray that, trusting that he will protect us, then that gives us kind of a definitely a peace that we're not so anxious about our travels. Definitely puts me at peace. And also, if we're in communion, he will guide us in our actual travels, meaning once you get to your destination and you are enjoying your time, that you're continually communing with God because often in these spaces where we are away from the day-to-day or in a different space, our minds are more open, our spirits are more open to potentially hearing from God because we have eliminated all the noise, all the distractions, all the clutter that could, you know, clamors for our attention. So this is a beautiful time. Don't forget God in that portion of your travels. And when you're traveling, you know, scripture can also be very soothing and give us peace and hope and something to hang on to, like this anchor to hang on to, because we know that God's word is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. And it he doesn't change. And so whatever promises or truths that are said in the Bible, we can still, even though they were written a long time ago, we can still cling to them. And the one that strikes me, especially when I'm thinking about travel, because many people, when they do travel, there's a there's anxiety that could kind of creep up, whether it's the pre-traveled jitters or once you get there, you're feeling very anxious. And particularly if you're by yourself, you're solo, there could be a lot of anxiety around that part because you don't have a buffer, you don't have someone else to sort of cling to. So I encourage you to cling to God in those times. But Philippians 4, 6 through 7 in the NIV, one of my favorites as far as speaking to this particular feeling is do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your request to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your mind in Christ Jesus. So we want to get to that place of peace that no human really understands. It's beyond our comprehension. But if you have experienced that peace from God, you understand what that feels like. And it's just such a relief, especially if you are struggling with anxiety. And then, you know, I always talk about just continually praying as well, just keeping that going from the beginning, the inception, all the way through the end of your trip, but even coming back. There should be some time of reflection as well when you come back. And so in 1 Thessalonians 5, 16 through 18, it talks about rejoice always, pray continually. That's the key word. Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. So no matter what your circumstances are when you're traveling, I always look at my situation as that silver lining or the glass hat full kind of perspective, because there's always something that you can learn in that situation. And in general, we should just be honestly praising God, grateful that we even get the opportunity to travel and have that experience. And not everybody gets that. And so if you can't think of anything to be thankful for, like you are trying to do this gratitude thing, then maybe just that foundation that you get to travel is a huge, huge blessing, and we should thank God for that. And there are really so many other verses about prayer, and I would encourage you, as you're thinking about maybe your next trip, that you would sit and pray about it first, and pray about where you're going, pray about the finances, pray about whether you're gonna do it alone or go on a tour. I mean, there's so many factors, and it can get overwhelming. But I feel if we really listen to the leading of God in what we do as far as our travels, and we view both of them as this beautiful communion of this journey of physically traveling or moving, along with sort of that spiritual or moving us closer to God. And that is at the heart of a lot of what I do in one-on-one travel coaching, is I help guide women to that place where not just planning a trip to go somewhere, but they're also having this opportunity to connect with God in the process and get closer to him and discover more about yourself and the process. And it's a beautiful journey that you can walk on. And if you're finding you need some help, I do offer one-on-one coaching and I would love to work with you. There's a link in the show notes where you can click and start to work with me. Sisters, I hope that the next trip you plan is covered in prayer for safety reasons, everything that's going on. We all need prayer, but also that those prayers go deeper and not just the surfacey things, but we get deeper into connecting with God and feeling His leading in all things that we do in our trips.