Hike Your Own Hike

So I'm back in the real world. Away from all the nature and beauty that God created, and the freedom that it holds. I'm back to work schedules, alarm clocks, and cell phones. I can't help but wish I was back on top of looking glass mountain. The hike to get to the top was challenging. The temptation to stray off the path and take short cuts was almost unbearable. The urge the give up grew stronger with every step. But what kept me going was the strength that only God could provide, the hope of reaching the top and the promise of a beautiful view. I learned a lot from that hike. More than any hour sermon could have taught me. It was ironic because the lesson I learned was actually taught later, but if God hadn't shown it to me the hard way I would have never understood. Life is hard sometimes, a lot of the time, and you're going to have the desire to stray off of the straight and narrow, but if you stay on that path, the outcome is breathtaking, overwhelming and wonderful, greater than any mountain top view. I hope I can hold onto this lesson for the rest of my life. I hope I can break this cycle of stupidity. I want to love Him more, seek Him more, find the purpose He has for my life, I want to please Him. I learned more than one lesson this weekend at Overflow Camp 2011 but this one was the greatest. God knows how stubborn I am. He knows it takes pain before I realize the stove is hot. He knows us all, intimately, He knows how to teach us, and more importantly, how to bring us back to Him. The end result that we're looking for, the mountain top that we're trying to reach, is heaven, an eternity with our father, our maker, our best friend. But that doesn't mean we can't enjoy Gods blessings here. If we follow Him and His calling for our lives, we can experience a little bit of heaven on earth, and a closer walk with Him. We just have to stay on the path, hike our own hike and be kingdom minded. The world will try to put obstacles in your way so you'll give up or stray but if you'll hold true God will give you the strength to make it to the top.