The Path

The Path

I was recently walking down a path in my life that became very difficult.  The farther down the path I went, the more strain and pressure I felt.  It was as if I walked out of the woods where the nearby stream whispered in my ear and a cool breeze tamed the summer heat.  The things that I had enjoyed were replaced with dry hot sand and a scorching sun that was more punishing than pleasurable.  The gentle path turned into a struggle that I had little desire to deal with.

I had only traveled this path for a short time before I recognized something was wrong. This just wasn't right.  Why would the Lord take me into such a place? I had no water. I had no covering to hide under as the sun beat down on me.  I cried out to Him, "I am not prepared for this."  (His reply? Well you guessed it, silence!) Determined to follow, I traveled forward in the direction I was sure He intended for me to go.  As the elements took their toll on me it wasn't hard to recognize that my effort increased and my progress decreased.

Finally, full of pain and frustration, I sat and pondered what had went wrong.  What had I done to deserve such a hard path?  But then again, what had I done to deserve the easy path that I had enjoyed?  At that moment truth began to set in.  What I had done?  Even the very best of my efforts and accomplishments would earn me no path as wonderful as the one that I now struggled with.  Even though the sun was beating down, the sand burned itself into my skin and extracted what little energy I had left, I rose and began to move forward once again.  With this new effort I started thanking the Lord for this hard path He allowed me to journey down.

My perspective began to change.  I was no longer as focused on my condition as I was on the Lord.  With eyes widened I began to see things that I had previously overlooked.  The sand and desert became incredible.  The things I now saw made me ponder how awesome my Creator is.  Noticing the small plants and even the scorpions, it dawned on me that to these the desert's sand and heart was home.  Yes, it was a place of enjoyment for many creatures that I refused to acknowledge previously when I was consumed with self.

Once again I sat to rest.  Only this time my focus was on how amazing God is. He can bring life out of the sand.  He can create things that can live in such harsh conditions, and He sustains them within the harsh environment.  My pondering quickly turned into thanks for all of the incredible things that He had blessed me with.  Truth once again began to establish itself in my soul and refresh me.  The path was hard, but He can sustain and provide me with all that I need.  Searching for purpose in my circumstances changed from a self-pitiful question "why?" to a thankful and enthusiastic "why not me?"

I cannot yet say with confidence what that purpose is.  Maybe there is someone else in the desert who needs assistance. Maybe it was just a lesson I needed to learn.  Maybe it was to grow me for a future purpose or maybe it was just because...

The lesson I come away with is from Romans 1:21-22, which states; For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools . . .

The word honor here means to glorify, invest with dignity, to recognize or esteem.  On a very practical daily level I was refreshed in the truth that I must honor God in everything.  It doesn't matter what path He has me on, easy or hard, I must give Him honor and glorify Him, not my circumstances or myself.  This is easy to say, but when the path changes to include things we don't understand or don't like, it seems effortless to exalt and focus on events and circumstances rather than on God.

In addition to this, I was reminded that second to giving God honor or glorifying Him was to give thanks.  What a simple thing, and yet how profound in the spiritual realm.  Giving thanks in all circumstances helps take the focus off the surroundings, good or bad, and puts it back on God where it should be.

The outcome of not honoring God and not giving Him thanks is the corruption of our thinking process.  This corruption leads not into the wisdom of God but into the foolishness of man.

During this fall season I would encourage you with the incredibly powerful truth that can set us free from many pitfalls in life.  It is honoring God and giving thanks to Him.  1 Thessalonians 5:18 puts it this way; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

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