Stepping Through Life

This morning I was thinking about taking positive steps forward into the new year, and how often we are faced with too many steps into negative territory.

I’m not saying they are necessarily wrong, or even moving in the wrong direction, but definitely a different direction than where we thought we were headed.

Maybe it’s like a maze. Wrong directions are not necessarily dangerous. They just don’t get you anywhere!

I love this Monument Valley puzzle game. The stairs, elevators, and various hindrances keep you guessing which way to turn. Sometimes you figure it out quickly. Other times it’s a lot of trial and error. Slowly you work your way through.

Regardless, you always have options and choose your direction based on perception, past moves, and analysis.

Think with me a moment today.

My focus, always the first thought I have, is spiritual. Solomon penned these words:

The name of the LORD is a strong tower;
The righteous run to it and are safe.
(Proverbs 18:10 NKJV)

Only twice before is a tower mentioned in scripture. The first is in Judges 9:51, where people fled into and to the top for safety. King David speaks of shelter and a strong tower that was his protection from the enemy in Psalms 61:3. Solomon comes at this thought with predecessor experience.

There are times the steps to safety and the right decision lead upwards. There are times it is the reverse. Developing muscles that move only in a single direction makes you a slow-poke when the opposite direction is required.

Listen to the logic of  Muhammad Ali, a famous and fearless boxer of decades gone by.

“Float like a butterfly. Sting like a bee.” 

Have you ever watched the wanderings of a butterfly as they flit about on the micro moves of airflow? It seems they are drunken pilots. Up. Down. Forward. Backward. Easily twisted by the currents, they fly through. But a Bee has more control and takes charge of the situation with the fearful prong and venom they claim ownership to.

Fly. Sting.
In and out. Sting.
Up and down. Sting.
Forwards and backward. Sting.

Walking This Life

It makes me think about our walk through this life. To get to the top, muscles propel, and you practice to increase your muscle strength. To retreat, muscles resist gravity; and you still practice control, so muscles act properly.

Balance is always a key motivator. Left and right. Forward and backward. Up and down. Keeping our life centered is important.

Yes. I’ve been on the mountaintop with a 70 lb pack and a hunting rifle. It was easier going up, though very hard and tiring work, than letting gravity get me down quicker!

Be prepared for a retreat from a dangerous or non-productive pathway. Find a place of shelter and a tower to hang out above the fray of the enemy below. Know your strength and weakness and exercise to prevent illogical failure in the greatest moment of need…

Think about you! It’s that important.

You Are Never Alone

This is a crucial thought today. No matter how lonely you feel, you are not walking these steps alone. There are many pilgrims walking beside you. Look around. Sometimes they are closer to you than you ever thought possible.

I always turn to this favorite thought that Jesus is never far from me.

Don’t be obsessed with getting more material things.
Be relaxed with what you have.
Since God assured us, “I’ll never let you down, never walk off and leave you,”
(Hebrews 13:5 MSG)

This takes me to a song I first heard back in my 30s. It’s ringing in my mind right now. I’ve got to find the cassette!

Never Alone