Photo Credit: Nicola via Creative Commons

 

[dropcaps style=’square’]M[/dropcaps]y short, leisurely walk to clear my head turned into more than I anticipated. I had all of the intentions of making it brief, but the longer I walked, the less I thought about the way back. It wasn’t until I was done that I had to retrace the steps that I just traveled. What initially seemed like an evening stroll turned into a walk down a long road. Sometimes in life, we have the same experience. We start out with the best intentions, not wanting to exert ourselves too much. We walk or run after the dreams God has planted in our hearts. Then, we realize that there are some challenges along the way. We thought it would be different. We thought it would be picture perfect.

 

Yet, when our short walk turns into a long road, sometimes we can wonder if the long road is the wrong road.

 Keep Walking 

For the sake of efficiency, we have become accustomed to the innovations that make things happen faster and with greater ease. The benefits of technology have propelled this expectation. We pay money for people to help us shorten our learning curve when trying to master a new skill. All of these things can be positive. Yet, in our life’s journey, sometimes we come to seasons of life that simply cannot be shortened. Instead of us seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, all we see is a really long road. It can be hard to keep walking. It can be hard to imagine that God is on the long road. He is. We pray for deliverance, and He gives us His hand. We pray for it to pass, and He gives us His peace. We pray for certainty, and He gives us strength to keep walking.

 

If you are on a long road, you don’t have the stamina to make it on your own. You will look behind you and ahead of you and all you will see is concrete stretched out for miles. Only God is able to help you. When we reach these points of allowing God to intervene, the road doesn’t necessarily get shorter. We just start collecting people, experiences, and memories along the way. We start letting go of things that are not helping us move forward- wrong attitudes, bitterness, unforgiveness, and unmet expectations. God does something unique in our hearts on long roads. I don’t know what it might be for you, but if you have walked down one, you know exactly what I am talking about. God begins to change our stories as we travel, because He is building something deep within our hearts and lives. What initially seemed like a long road in a desert can actually turn into an unexpected oasis for our souls. Long roads will teach us something that nothing else can teach us. When we look back, it is much easier to celebrate the lessons that we learned in a different season of life. Yet, as we live them, it can be a hard road, even when each step is preparing us for our future.

 The Best Road 

We usually think we know best. We would rather do without the hard stuff and just walk into our destiny. In order to fulfill our God-given destinies, we have to grow, change, and mature. Only God can see who you will need to be on the other side. No one raises their hand and signs up to travel this path. But, at one time or another, we all seem to find ourselves on the “in-between” road as we journey. I don’t know what road that you are walking today. Just remember that a long road isn’t a wrong road if God is walking with you. So if the path stretches out before you with no end in sight, just keep walking.

 

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About Hona Amer

I help people live life to the fullest. Check out my book, Smart Work U. Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. In order to receive updates, subscribe below.

 

 

 

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