On path picking…
On an overwhelming day, filled with indecision and insecurity about the future, I drove to the top of our local ski hill to try and get some perspective.
I stood there with a 360 degree view of the surrounding area. A wash of emotion brought back that old fear of too many options, too many choices. As I stood there feeling defeated and alone, I slowly realized that although I could see all around me, there were only a limited number of paths down from the top. I didn’t have to choose from an unlimited number of options but I could simply choose one of a few paths. If later I found I didn’t like it, crossroads would come, and I could choose another.
In order to figure out how to move forward from here, I try to look at the options in front of me. Which of these paths is headed in a direction I feel drawn to? This strategy helps. I read something the other day that reminded me that people doing great things for God aren’t sitting around wondering about His Will, instead they are simply doing the things in front of them.
Maybe God’s will is that I serve humbly, speak gently, and love completely.
Maybe God’s will is that I give up my rights to secure the rights of the weak and vulnerable. Maybe God’s will is that I love unconditionally.
Maybe God’s will is that I turn the other cheek and love my enemies.
Maybe God’s will is that I give sacrificially.
Maybe God’s will is that I look after the powerless and forgotten.
Maybe God’s will is that I serve those who disagree with me, respectfully.
Maybe God’s will is that I invite the lonely and hungry to my table.
So, as I think about the future, I am looking for ways to love and live well, right were I am. I am spending more time praying about how I live than where we go from here. I am asking God to show me the path. I am also asking Him to help me walk the path I’m on in a way that reveals who He is in my life. As I look into the Word, I am encouraged to find that this seems to be His way.
No, O people, the LORD has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8
Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
Isaiah 58:6-9
This is part of a 31 day writing challenge. If you are interested in following along, you can find the rest of the series here. Thank you for stopping by!
