“The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn’t matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark.” (Barbara Hall)
I used to hike a lot, back before all my health issues became my everyday norm and when I did, I often liked doing it alone. With just me and God in nature, it was usually the perfect combination to helping me feel a lot better and generally more connected to Source. Whether it was hiking in parks, mountains, or on beaches, I simply enjoyed exploring. Sometimes in those nature-filled explorations, I’d veer off the main trails I was on and follow less marked ones mostly in the hopes of seeing something unique and special that most others wouldn’t. Typically, those deviations never amounted to much of anything other than hitting a dead-end or getting lost for a short period of time. But, as soon as I found my way back onto those main trails, I’d eventually get to see the special clearings and views that everyone else got to see as well. Recently, I found myself pondering all this and realized how much my hiking is quite symbolic to my life in general.
You see throughout my life, I’ve most definitely have wandered off the path I was meant to be from time to time, sometimes for longer periods than others, all in the hopes of discovering something better or something easier or something just different from all that mundaneness that life was bringing me. Sadly, the majority of those alternate paths I chose frequently landed me in addictions, toxic relationships, disappointing jobs, poor health and worse. And with each, I’d consistently see the Higher Path, my original path, was the best path all along and so I’d trudge my way back onto it with new lessons learned.
The fact remains, there are a lot of paths out there that may seem far more alluring and attractive than the one we’re on. But even if the majority of those other paths lead us into nothing more than greater pain and hardship, there’s Something that’s constantly there to guide us back onto the one that’s for our Highest Good.
While it’s true I probably won’t stay on my Highest Path 100% for the rest of my life and will most likely get lost on a few side trails from time to time looking for greater excitement or another easier, softer way, I’m just glad to know I can ALWAYS call on God to make my way back onto the path I’m meant to be on, because in the end, God ALWAYS has shown me the way.
Dear God, I know I’m not unique in that I tend to stray off the path I’m meant to be on from time to time. Please don’t ever let me remain lost for too long and thank you for the help I know you will forever freely give me to find my way back into Your arms.
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
