God's guidance?
1. God who closes and opens
The Holy Spirit closes a door that we want to go
but opens a door that He wants us to go
(Acts 16:6-10).
2. God who leads us around
God does not lead us by the short way.
But He leads us around by the long way through a desert
(Exodus 13:17-18).
God's purpose is not only to reveal His glory to us
(Exodus 14-15) but also to humble us and to teach us that "the man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord"(Deuteronomy 8:2-3).
3. God who goes ahead of us and makes us to stop
God who goes ahead of us makes us to stop before the Lord Jesus (Matthew 2:9).
Like Martha, when we are busy doing something for the Lord, God lead us to the Lord's feet, like Mary, so that we may listen to His voice (Luke 10:39-40).
4. God who leads us to the desert in order for us to be tempted by the devil.
God never tempts us (James 1:13).
But God tests us (Ex. Genesis 22).
God allows us to be tempted by the devil in the desert
(God's permissive will, Matthew 4:1).
This doesn't mean that God is tempting us through the devil,
for we are tempted by our own evil desire and are dragged away and enticed
(James 1:14).
It means that in God's sovereignty God allows us to be tempted by the devil like Job whom God allowed Satan to strike his children, his possessions and him (Job 1:13, 2:6).
God's purpose is to teach us that when Satan tempts us we can overcome by the every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord (Matthew 4:4, 7, 10; Deuteronomy 8:3).