Need A Guide?

The pathway was steep and narrow. The ground on one side, steeply rose, and on the other side dropped away just as steeply. On the left, I could reach out and touch the mountain. On the right, a misstep would send me for an extended tumble down the mountainside. Part of the path was through loose shale. Here and there, the trail narrowed to 12 inches wide or less. Yet the pathway was clear. There was no doubt which way I should lead the group as I climbed the mountain. Occasionally another trail would stray off in a different direction only to fade into oblivion within a few yards. The correct path was clear, worn down to the soil, and indicated with blaze marks on the trees. 

In the western part of Montana, towns commonly put the first letter of their name on the mountain above them. I was guiding some visitors on a hike to the “A.” The “A” was across the valley from the town of Alberton and about 1,200 feet higher altitude. Being the leader, I had to pace my visitors so they could complete the climb.

I have often wished that all the paths in life were as easy to follow as the one I hiked that day. I seem to have trouble knowing what direction the path of life is going next. I find that I get stuck in the switchbacks of life. I spend time deliberating which way to go when there is an intersection. Maybe I have trouble seeing what is in front of me, or perhaps I am just stubborn, but these hard times help me to recognize the value of having a guide. Someone who knows which way to go and what the results of a wrong turn will be.

A key aspect of using a guide is to trust the person guiding you. We must have faith even when the trail is challenging to travel and takes us into unfamiliar territory. God is our Guide through life. He leads us along, urging us to stay so close to Him that we live in His shadow. 

 Several years ago, my wife received a diagnosis of vocal cord cancer. We were anxious not just because of the danger of having cancer but also because during her cancer treatment; she would lack the ability to continue in her job. We prayed. We asked God for miraculous healing. We begged for God to sustain us through this time. Yet God’s answer seemed to be, “Just hold tightly to my hand.” We wanted to know the plan. We wanted to see the path ahead of time, but God said, “Just trust Me.” We worried. We tried to plan how we would survive. We attempted to prepare. Nothing could have prepared us for what God did.

 During the time my wife was off work, gifts appeared in the mailbox from unexpected and sometimes unknown sources. Her coworkers donated leave time. Vehicles would show up with trunk loads of food. A group running a local food drive showed up with an SUV full of food. We still have no idea how they even heard about us. The funds always appeared just in time to pay the bills, and we came to understand that God was guiding us on this path. He knew where He was leading us. He had a plan, and we needed to trust Him as He guided us. We could not see any way forward. We were not even sure there was a path to follow, but God knew the route.

Sometimes we ask God, “Why am I in this lonely place?” or, “Why do I need to do things that make me uncomfortable?” We find comfort when we realize that God always provides for those who are willing to be guided by Him. We need to hold on and see what the destination He is leading us too.

I was hiking with a friend when we encountered a small cliff that blocked our way. He scrambled up the face and got on top. He was several inches taller than I was and could reach further than I could. I tried to follow. I got most of the way up the cliff face and could not reach the last few inches to pull myself up over the edge. Then his hand appeared. He said, “Here. Grab my hand.” I grabbed ahold of his hand, and he pulled me up over the edge.

Sometimes we are on the cliff face with nowhere to go, and God offers us His hand. He says, “Let me pull you up.” We desperately cling to the eroding handholds we have as we question, “Can I trust you, God? How can I be confident that You will not drop me?”  We recognize that we will have to release our grip on the crumbling stone under our fingers, and we might fall as we reach for God. We hesitate as our strength begins to fail, and the handhold we are trusting continues to dissolve under our fingers. God has never dropped anyone who was reaching for Him. He has always caught those who slipped as they stretched in His direction. He holds them and protects them.

When I was a teenager, the place we lived was within a few hundred yards of public land. It was not unusual for me to tell my parents I was going hiking, give them a general area, and then disappear for several hours. One day I was going hiking, and I took our dog with me. I set out with a specific location I wanted to hike to that day. I was only a short distance on my hike when the dog stood across the path in front of me and refused to let me pass. She kept looking down the trail and positioning herself between me and whatever it was that she perceived as danger.  She had never behaved like this before. Eventually, I gave up and headed home. She stayed and kept watch until she felt I was far enough away from the danger, and then she ran to catch up to me.

When we feel that the path we are walking in life is blocked, it is a good idea to stop and see why. Perhaps we have quit following the Guide and started to follow personal preference instead. Maybe God is trying to keep us from stepping into a disaster.  We must trust the Guide, follow His lead, and live in the protection of His shadow.