Because I’m familiar with my daughter’s neighborhood, I often walk there. But yesterday I decided to go off in an unknown path. Assuming that all the streets had been laid out in rectangles like the ones I normally traversed, I walked a little further down the main highway and turned down an unfamiliar lane. I soon discovered that my assumption was wrong. In the part of the village that I entered, the streets curved up, down, and around the hills. I thought that if I just kept turning in the right direction I would soon see a familiar street sign which would lead me back to the main highway. No such luck! I recognized none of the street signs, and many were marked “Dead End.”
Oh well (I thought) if I get lost, I can call my husband and he will pick me up. To reassure myself of that fact, I put my hand into my coat pocket to touch my cell phone—only to find out that I had left it at home. Rather than panic, I prayed. I asked God to show me someone who could tell me where to find the main highway. In a few minutes, I saw a car backing out of the garage onto the street. Suddenly, a girl came running out of the house and waved for the driver to stop. “Can you tell me how to get back to North Country Road?” I yelled. “I can’t; I don’t live here but she can,” said the girl, as she pointed to the driver. Having clear directions, I was soon walking in familiar territory; back home, I said to my husband, “That was fun!”
As I reflected on this simple experience, I came up with the following principles:
- In choosing an unknown path, I will likely find surprises that I’m unprepared for.
- Some paths are dead ends that I’d be wise to avoid.
- There’s no guarantee that I will have everything I need, but that’s no reason for panic.
- If I lose my way, I can ask God and others for help.
- Choosing an unknown path offers me an opportunity to grow and learn; it can be an enjoyable adventure.
Here are some questions for you to consider and some actions to take:
- What familiar “paths” do you walk in, day after day?
- Which of these paths are helpful and which are not?
- What dead end paths do you know from experience that it would be wise for you to avoid?
- What one unknown path would you like to explore? Tell someone about it.
- What fears are causing you to avoid exploring that path?
- Write down a baby-step that you are willing to take in order to overcome that/those fear(s).
- Make a time commitment to take that step and tell someone what you are going to do.
Thanks again for such a great read! I don’t reply to all of them but just wanted you to know that every time I read what you write I get something from it.
You’ve left me with great questions to ponder. I’ve done exactly what you have several times and sometimes my intuition was right and the road I chose brought me back to where I wanted to be. Whenever I venture into unknown territory I usually take notice of some kind of landmark a building or tree or something that stands out. If I feel like I’m too far in with no idea where I am I try to backtrack using those landmarks and then a sigh of relief when I make it back. Thanks for your example and reminder that God is always there to help and He will put people in our path to help as well.
Thanks for your comment, Rose. I don’t expect you to reply to every post I write, but when you do so I always feel encouraged.
I love to go on adventures! My book, “Lambs in the Wilderness,” is about a very wild, exciting path.
What age group is your book for?