Wilderness to Road

For too long I had wandered in this wilderness; dodging branches, trudging thru weeds, trying to find my way.

For too long I had found path after path, hopeful that it would take me where I needed to go, only for it to lead to yet another dead end, another thorny bush, another muddy creek.

For too long I had felt alone in these woods, wondering when, and sometimes if, I would ever find my way to the road that would take me home.

And all this time I had wandered alone, I pictured him knowing exactly where he was going.

I had no idea he was in a different wilderness of his own, just out of sight.

For too long we wandered alone, together.

There were so many moments, high with optimism, when I would see the sun's rays breaking through the dead and bare tree branches ahead of me, lighting up what surely must be an opening that would lead me to the road home.

Yet every time I reached the clearing, it proved to be just that: a clearing. A welcome rest, indeed, but not the way out. Just a sunny, open meadow surrounded by more forested hills, more wilderness to work through, more paths to decipher, negotiate, and be disappointed by.

Until...

Until that one fateful turn, when I saw the Light, and I wanted to go, but having faced disappointment so many times before I hesitated, I waited, I thought about it.

I stared at that Light so long I knew every ray's path through every branch by heart.

And then I decided to take yet another chance, yet another leap of faith. And I tentatively, anxiously walked slowly toward the Light.

And this time, this time, when I walked free of the treeline, my eyes saw but one thing, for there he was, just across from me, looking around as he emerged from his own wilderness.

Our eyes met, and we stared at each other from a distance. Yet in what seemed like an instant we were together, face to face, hand in hand.

Our wastelands behind us, we stood in the Light, tired and muddy, hungry and thirsty, but both of us finally free from the years of struggle we'd suffered through.

He looked down at me, his eyes full of love like I had never seen, as we pledged to continue on this journey together, as we promised to one other that we would, together, find the road home.

There are times in our lives when it seems like the minutes are ticking by at a snail's pace. There are other time's in our lives when it seems like the hours have become seconds. Wilderness feels like a snail. The road? It's like riding a rocket to the Heavens.

In what seemed like just a moment's time we went from wandering in separate wildernesses, to riding on the freeway.

We're coasting now, flying along at record speed.

If you've ever been lost in the woods, you know that there's a comfort that comes when you find the road.

We're not sure exactly where this road is leading, but we do have the Map.

We know where we've been, and we know where we are. The restlessness of wandering is gone. Just waiting for Someone to tell us our destination.

Aren't we anxious, not knowing the destination?

No. We know Who built the road. We know Who wrote the Map. And we know which road we're on.

It's good. Life is good. Love is good.

God is good.

As always, thanks for checking in, and God bless.