Morning Walk

One Sunday morning, in lieu of going to church, I decided to take a walk.  I’m learning there are several paths around my little country house in Germany.  On this day, I decided to explore a new path.  The path today took me along a pasture.  I wanted to go for a walk to enjoy fresh air, to pray, and to be in the Lord’s presence.  As I walked, I asked the Lord for a word.

With the climate here, the weather is often cloudy.  Because my house is located in a town that sits on a hill, often times in the morning, I will look out my window and the clouds will be low in the valleys.  As the sun rises, the clouds slowly lift out.

This morning as I walked, I actually walked through a few clouds.  My path started off easy, paved, and clean.  Eventually though, the path split into two different directions.  One direction went to left and headed downward.  It was foggier there because it was low and away from the sun, but it was paved.  To the right, the path led toward the sun.  But the path was not paved.  It was a little steeper, a little rockier, and a little muddier.  But because it was in the direction of the sun, I could see better.  So, I decided to walk toward the right onto the unpaved path.

On this path, it was still foggy.  I could see about 40 meters in front of me.  In order to walk clearly, I had to keep walking toward the mist, and as I would near the fog, it would clear up and I could see a little further ahead.  It was then, that I received the word from God for which I had been waiting…

You see, when we follow Christ, we have to choose to follow His light.  His light, might require us to venture out onto muddier, rockier, and steeper paths, but we can see a little bit clearer.  And even when our vision starts to become blurry, if we continue to walk in the direction of the light, the path clears.

We all have weaknesses that trouble us and sometimes cloud our judgment and vision.  Mine tell me to avoid getting close people.  I have no problem sitting and talking to others and hearing their stories, but I become overwhelmed and terrified if they ask to hear mine.  If people try to draw close to me, it will only allow them to see more clearly how imperfect I truly am.  I would much rather put up walls and keep people at a certain distance so that they never see the full me.  From a distance, I can paint whatever picture of myself I want and allow the mystery of my true story add to the appeal.

However, when we venture out on a path in the direction of the light, trusting in the Lord and walking in faith, His light clears our path.  But it causes us to trust Him and take steps forward.  It might mean that the path causes us to face our fears, but it is the better path.  Overcoming weaknesses requires taking daily steps.  Some days are going to be steeper, slipperier, and rockier.  But we should never be discouraged.  Regardless, we’re making progress.