Closer To Me

So…

I decided to take a walk on a new path the other morning.

I figured I had walked the same path for a while and felt that my mind, my body, and my spirit needed a change.

I also LOVE new challenges and new territories to explore.

I am the ultimate Tommy Pickles.

Thus, I set off in a new direction.

I had no idea where this new direction would take me.

All I knew was that I would be okay, and I would know how to get back home no matter what.

Getting lost has never been my thing and I was not about to let fear arrest me now.

So, I’m off…

I’m walking down streets I’ve never seen before in all my years of living here.

I’m seeing houses and neighborhoods that I never imagined were this close to me.

There are hills and curves in the streets that I have to navigate, but this is all exciting!

I eventually make it to a place in my walk where the sidewalk narrows and eventually disappears.

“What am I supposed to do now, God?

The sidewalk is gone and walking in the street isn’t exactly the safest option?

Should I turn back?

Should I retrace my steps and go to more familiar territories?

Was this walk and this prompt to explore something new a mistake this whole time?”

As I survey what is visible ahead of me and contemplate what is common behind me, I come across some grass where the sidewalk used to be.

“Well, I can’t walk on the grass, God. But there’s literally nowhere else for me to safely keep going forward.”

As my body instinctually puts one foot in front of the other, I notice that in the grass, there are some indentations.

These indentations are only visible the closer you get.

And these indentations merge to form a slight walking path in the grass in lieu of the sidewalk that is now completely gone.

“There have been people here before!

Someone has walked this path before me and had the same thoughts I am having right now!

But instead of turning back, they decided to go forward and create their own path!

The lack of the sidewalk did not deter them.

And because of their willingness to forge on and not cower back to the familiar…

I can walk this path with confidence, not fearing that I’ve made a mistake, but instead trusting that my steps are ordered, and a way WILL be made for me as I believe and press forward!”

I was so excited at this mini-revelation I had just received!

And then to top it off, I heard a whisper in my ear as I hopefully trotted through the grass…

“You may not be familiar with this new path, and it may scare you to not know where it leads. But I know where it leads. I know that you will be richer for having traveled this path. I know that it will take you away from what is known and out of your comfort zone, but that is on purpose. I know you are often tempted to turn back because it LOOKS like there is no more sidewalk left for you to travel on. But when you run out of what appears to sustain you, I will provide what actually does. You need not follow what you know but instead trust me! I am making a NEW way for you, roads in the wilderness, streams in the desert. You can keep going. I promise I will keep you.”

I walked through the grass, proudly leaving my footprints for the next soul behind me who may be contemplating their own path, and I eventually make it to another sidewalk.

Only, this time, I wasn’t afraid if the sidewalk disappeared again.

I knew that no matter where I had to walk, whether a nicely paved piece of cement or the imprinted grooves of the fresh earth, I was ABLE and EMPOWERED to move forward…

After the journey out, my walk back home was different.

I was different.

I had increased…

In wisdom, in power, in understanding, in patience, in courage, in confirmation, in awareness, in strength…

AND I had lost a few calories along the way! *winning*

I got home, took a shower, ate some scrambled eggs, and reflected on my walk…

Both here and in the heavenly places.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (Reliance on God)

Isaiah 43:18-19 (New Things)

Hebrews 11 (Legacy of Bold Faith)

Where are you right now?

Are you starting something new?

Are you battling thoughts of doubt or fear?

Are you second guessing your walk and tempted to go back?

Are you being consumed by what you see instead of what you believe?

Let’s talk about it.

Let’s get Closer…together!