Recently I vacationed in the Smokies with friends who invited me to come with them. I was blessed beyond measure in so many ways during that vacation, but one particular thing struck me while hiking the Abram's Falls trail in The Great Smoky Mountains, and the thought I had is what developed into this post.
Then I started considering something else. I started realizing that as my eyes observed the trail I would make a mental note of where certain obstacles were; rocks in the way, troublesome roots sticking up, sticks obstructing the path, and then I noticed how often my body automatically maneuvered itself to avoid tripping to begin with. I was able to keep my pace, see an obstacle and duck, or swerve to the side, possibly lift one foot higher off the ground to avoid a rock, or simply lengthen or shorten my stride momentarily to miss a slippery spot on the trail. My eyes would see the obstacle and immediately my brain sent all the right signals and the appropriate body movements took place to avoid even a stumble. I didn't have to see the obstacle and conscientiously react; watch my leg, think about lifting it higher so that my foot would avoid the obstacle, no, I simply saw it and my body did what it had to do to avoid danger. It really happened so quickly that I didn't think about it, I just kept right on walking.
Then it occurred to me that this is something similar to what it is like to walk in the Spirit.
As we walk through life in the power of the Holy Spirit, we can apply the truth we've learned through God's Word to life, so as troubles arise, we are able to adjust accordingly and overcome the obstacle. Sometimes we are able to see trouble on the path ahead because the Holy Spirit nudges us to pay attention and see the danger, and then we can completely avoid the problem by staying on course and not veering to the left or the right. For the most part, walking in the Spirit is that automatic adjustment that happens as we go about our day to day lives, avoiding pitfalls and choices that take us away from the path we are following. Following the Holy Spirit is not always something we consciously do, but it is putting into practice the precepts we have learned as we walk with God day after day.
Sometimes, like on the trails of The Smokies, the road is bumpy and we get tripped up. The pitfalls and bad choices are always because we choose to believe the lie; the lie that more money will make us happy so we choose this job over that, the lie that alcohol will take away emotional pain, the lie that you need to be married to be happy, the lie that success in your career will be what makes you happy, etc. We may have ignored the warning signals from the Holy Spirit; mystical unctions or maybe warnings fellow believers pointed out, and fell flat on our face because we sought things that would bring only temporary happiness. We may have chosen to fill the emptiness in our lives with something other than God. We may have chosen the way of sin, and then found ourselves suffering terrible consequences. Eventually, the Holy Spirit will convict us. The Holy Spirit will woo us back onto the path of the righteousness, and we can readjust our lives again and live according to the Truth. This often requires a much more conscientious choice to be obedient to the Holy Spirit and get back on the path that He is guiding us to.
Walking in the Spirit is like walking a hiking trail, we need to be attentive at all times and constantly adjust our stride to make sure we always remain on the correct path, because the pay off at the end is much too important to miss!
I'm pretty sure that is the same trail we hiked this past fall! We love the Smokies. So beautiful! Your post is so true, too. I'm enjoying your blog very much. Thanks for the follow on Twitter...that's how I found your blog!
ReplyDeleteThanks! I needed to follow some new people for some freshness in the feed. You are supplying that!
ReplyDeleteIt seems since FB and Twitter came along that blogging has taken a backseat, but now and then I'm inspired so I keep it up along with my friend and sister in Christ, Katie. :)