News from the Appalachian Trail

A View From the Appalachian Trail

I reported that my grandson, Spencer, and his wife, Jenny, are in the process of walking the Appalachian Trail. They have not completed about two weeks of the walk and have covered about 1/3 of the State of Maine. They have covered about 100 miles and have about 2400 to go. Our grandson, Brian, who is a captain in the USAF is endeavoring to obtain some of the new type of rations that the military has available in order to give them something more satisfying than oatmeal for breakfast each day and trail mix for dinner.
All the family sits in amazement as we hear about the intense walk that they are undertaking. They have seen a variety of wild animals including one they did not see. They were awakened on a recent morning to hear something rummaging around outside of their tent. From the sound, they assumed that it was a moose, but they wisely stayed in the tent and did not test out their theory.
The walking is hard, but the scenery is beautiful. The trail through the mountains of Maine leads them past some lakes of great beauty. They are lakes that most of us do not see because we don’t undertake the difficult hike for ourselves. They don’t stop to fish or camp along the lakes, but they plod on so they can conclude their walk between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The beautiful lakes combine with the mountaintop views that they have as they walk along. As they gaze out on the spectacular vistas, sore knees and hungry stomachs fade into insignificance. Laying down the burdens on their backs at the end of the day must feel really great, but just think of the ability to close your eyes and go to sleep and the reward that all of this brings.
Life is a little like walking the long trail. There are difficult spots along the way and it may not bring pain to our knees, but the difficult places may bring pain to the heart. A broken relationship, a harsh word spoken, or a flare up of tempers may cripple our walk for the Lord. We can let the external detract from the eternal. We need to be able to lay down our heads and hearts at the end of the day and know that the walk was worth it.
A life of victory is what God intends for each of His children. He doesn’t want us to be defeated by the walk, but He wants us to grow as we walk. He has cool beautiful lakes to refresh our souls along the way. He has vistas beyond our imagination that He wants us to see as we grow in Him.
We don’t know if Spencer and Jenny are going to make it to the end of the trail they are on. There is no reason they need to do that because they are only doing the walk because they want to. If they only go half way, they don’t have to apologize to anyone. It is different with life. God expects His children to cross the finish line victorious. They are not just on a self imposed walk. They are under marching orders from God and He expects us to be victors in the Christian walk. We are very fortunate that we have resources for this walk that are not available along the Appalachian Trail. Jesus stands at the finish line ready to say to us, “Well done.” Because we have listened to His instructions, followed His leading, and allowed Him to carry our burdens, rest our souls, and strengthened our bodies through it.
Recently a man in Georgia saw what looked like a foreign object in the sky. He was sure it was a UFO, but it wasn’t. It proved to be the moon itself. He focused on that object and became obsessed with it. We need to be obsessed with the one who calls us from the sky and wants us to focus on Him for the walk that is before us. He is not a fancy of our imagination, but Jesus is the real thing. The writer of Hebrews says in chapter two concerning running that race:
1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

We don’t know when we will cross that finish line. I know that I am much closer to it than at any other time in my almost 81 years, but the timing doesn’t matter. We may cross it close to our birth or close to our three score and ten. God wants us to be ready to cross it at any time and His Word promises that Jesus will be there whenever we do cross that line

Enjoy life’s vistas. Fill up on God’s portioned rations. Don’t lose sight of the goal where Jesus stands ready to welcome us to our eternal home. What will it be like in heaven? No one knows all the details. We only know that it will be wonderful, fulfilling, and joyful. What more could we ask for?