Long And Winding Trail

We were standing at the bottom of a set of trails that would take us to the top of the mountain just outside Radium. Coming down the trail was no problem but we could see that ascending was going to be a bit more of a challenge. There was a path that led straight up the side of the face and another that meandered back and forth. Now, one of the guys in our group was quite the athletic specimen and looked at the direct path as both a challenge and the fastest way up the face. He spent a bit of time trying to convince us all that this was the best way up the hill but for some of us, we chose a different way. There was some friendly banter and teasing but, in the end, a group of them bolted straight up while the few remaining, including me, took to the winding path. Our trek was going to take a bit longer as we had almost triple the distance to travel and we could see the group disappear into the distance. We could still hear them but we remained on our own quest to do the climb in our own time and in our own way.

 

When we got about halfway up, we noticed they had stopped just up ahead to catch their breath as this was no easy climb. The moment they saw us, however, they got up took off except for a couple who decided to join us in our journey. As we got closer to the top, we noticed most of the group had reached the summit but a couple more were missing and we came to find out they had jumped onto the winding trail just ahead of us. The whole time up the hill, we could hear the group hollering and encouraging everyone to keep going, we will all meet at the summit. It was a fun journey and, while we all took different paths, we still got to the same point eventually.

 

I watched a video that Jeff Foxworthy had done for a men’s faith gathering and what caught my attention was when he announced to the group that, when he was younger, he watched as so many held true to the path and rarely wavered, but his journey was more of a winding trail filled with detours and switchbacks. Life is, for some, filled with these sidetracks and rabbit trails and there are times when the tendency is to give up finding the right path and take the detour. Some will recall that when they were the most lost, those on the direct path would taunt and judge but, in this case, our athletic friend made sure we knew he was not far away and the destination was in sight. He did not cast us off as being lazy or forever lost but rather praised us all as we reached our journeys end all together. There are those who do not choose our path as they journey through life but if we empathize with their plight and encourage them along the way, we can all reach the goal and claim the prize.

 

I encourage you to read two passages in preparation for this Sunday. Ephesians 4:29 (NLT) says “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.” while Galatians 6:2-3 (NLT) Paul tells us to “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important.” 

 

We invite you to join us this Sunday either in person (we are limited to numbers inside the building) or online. Should you wish to join us online, click on either link below to join us live:

Facebook Live - https://www.facebook.com/main.ave.31

YouTube Live – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs9LIkN_QTdVM6eVXEgy9QA

See you all Sunday.

Blessings,

Pastor Todd

www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca