The Pastor's Pen
I would appreciate it if life offered a detour around its harder moments. A clearly marked road, preferable paved, with somewhere to stop for coffee.
Instead, we sometimes find that the only way forward takes us through the very thing we hoped to avoid.
“The best way out is always through.” Those words have been on my mind lately. There are conversations we would rather postpone, decisions we wish someone else could make, and changes we know are needed even while we dread them. We can spend considerable energy looking for a way around the discomfort.
I know I can.
Of course, difficulty itself is no guarantee that we are doing the right thing. We still need prayer, careful thought, and the wisdom of people we trust. But sometimes, after all that discernment, the hard thing remains ours to do.
We tell the truth. We ask for help. We make a change. We take a step toward a future that will require something of us before we can see its good.
Scripture is honest about such journeys. The people of Israel passed through the wilderness on their way to a new life. Along the way, they were frightened, impatient, and often uncertain. God’s presence accompanied them through all of it.
That gives me hope. Faith does not require us to feel brave before we begin. We can move forward with a shaky voice, a heavy heart, and a prayer that is little more than, “Please help me.”
Even when a difficult step is necessary, we can take it with compassion. A necessary decision may still hurt someone. An honest conversation still calls for gentleness. Our hope for the future asks us to attend to the people beside us today.
If you are facing something difficult this week, I hope you will give yourself time to pray and someone to talk with. Then, when the next faithful step becomes clear, may you find the courage to take it.
You do not have to see the whole road to walk it. And you do not have to walk it alone.
Instead, we sometimes find that the only way forward takes us through the very thing we hoped to avoid.
“The best way out is always through.” Those words have been on my mind lately. There are conversations we would rather postpone, decisions we wish someone else could make, and changes we know are needed even while we dread them. We can spend considerable energy looking for a way around the discomfort.
I know I can.
Of course, difficulty itself is no guarantee that we are doing the right thing. We still need prayer, careful thought, and the wisdom of people we trust. But sometimes, after all that discernment, the hard thing remains ours to do.
We tell the truth. We ask for help. We make a change. We take a step toward a future that will require something of us before we can see its good.
Scripture is honest about such journeys. The people of Israel passed through the wilderness on their way to a new life. Along the way, they were frightened, impatient, and often uncertain. God’s presence accompanied them through all of it.
That gives me hope. Faith does not require us to feel brave before we begin. We can move forward with a shaky voice, a heavy heart, and a prayer that is little more than, “Please help me.”
Even when a difficult step is necessary, we can take it with compassion. A necessary decision may still hurt someone. An honest conversation still calls for gentleness. Our hope for the future asks us to attend to the people beside us today.
If you are facing something difficult this week, I hope you will give yourself time to pray and someone to talk with. Then, when the next faithful step becomes clear, may you find the courage to take it.
You do not have to see the whole road to walk it. And you do not have to walk it alone.
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