I’m not sure about you, but I much prefer warm weather over cold. This winter has been a cold one for Georgia and I have seen more snow come down in my entire life of living in Georgia. Which don’t get me wrong, I had a blast playing in the snow. My friend James and I built probably the most impressive snowman you have ever seen. It was awesome. But even with all that fun, there is no doubt that I am ready for the warmth to come.
The thing about Georgia is you never really know when it is going to start getting warm, however, a couple weeks ago the forecast for the upcoming Sunday showed it was going to be in the high 60’s. A few friends and I wanting to make sure we took advantage of the beautiful day decided to plan a hike after church. It ended up being the perfect day for a hike.
We went to Rope Mill park in Woodstock, which farther back into the trails there is a train track bridge that is a lot of fun to walk across. I cannot lie, it is a little on the sketchy side, but it is a lot of fun and makes for some sweet views.
After hanging out on the bridge for awhile we started making our way back. Along the way we spotted a huge tree that had fallen, but instead of falling all the way to the ground, the tree got wedged in between two other trees. The way the tree was set up created a balance beam where someone could step on top of the tree starting at the base and then walk along the tree where every step took you higher and higher into the air.
We immediately started nagging one another on to see if anyone would be willing to try to walk across. My friend Daniel Peters volunteered first. He probably ended up going about a quarter of the way out before turning around.
Then, Stephanie, one of my other good friends that was on the hike, challenged me to give it a go. I felt fairly comfortable with my balancing skills, plus I’m not usually one to back out of a challenge. So I decided why not!
The first few steps were a breeze. But as I started to get a little further out I noticed my speed was slowing down. Then, as I was right around half way across the tree I froze. I started looking around for another nearby tree or branch that I could potentially lean on for some extra balance, however, there was nothing but open air.
Not only had I stopped moving forward but it seemed as though my abundance amount of confidence I had just moments ago quickly ran dry. I started feeling uneasy and even attempted to turn around. However, without anything to grab I couldn’t process how I would be able to do so without falling.
So after running my options through my head, which there were not many, I decided to continue forward. I figured that once I had reached the end I could either climb down the two trees that were holding the fallen tree up in the air or much more comfortably turn around so I could walk back across.
I felt confident this was the best decision, but, it certainly did not make taking steps any easier. I managed to slowly take one baby step after another while occasionally pausing, and when I say a baby step I’m talking two to three inches at a time.
I managed to get roughly three quarters of the way across when I realized there was a branch in my pathway. The branch was not near thick enough to provide any support, but it did do a great job of getting in my way and making it harder to accomplish my goal, which was to safely reach the end of the tree.
While standing still again, I managed to slowly move the branch back and then behind me. I started slowly taking my steps again while holding the branch back with my arm. At this point my internal mood was a combination of happiness and eeriness. For one I could see I was only a few arm lengths away from the end, but at the same time I could also see, by looking down, I was at the highest point possible, roughly 20 to 30 feet in the air.
I again took one slow and small step after another until I finally reached the end. I was so relieved. The trees that were holding the fallen tree up were at an awkward angle so I decided to walk back across.
I was able to comfortably turn myself around while leaning on the other two trees and with the confidence I had gained from already having conquered this nature balance beam I made it back across in a third of the time.
All in all the hike was a huge success, having enjoyed the beautiful weather with my friends and successfully walking across the huge tree.
Although I think this in of itself is a great story I most likely would not have shared it if it was not for what God laid on my heart following the hike.
See, sometimes my walk with Christ can feel like walking across that tree. I feel uncomfortable and I look around and it seems like there is nothing to help me keep my balance. Just like walking across the tree I fear that at any moment I could lose my footing and fall off.
Sometimes I get down on myself that I am not moving along in my walk with Christ fast enough, or at least as fast as I feel I should be going. However, God reminded me how incredibly patient He is.
God is not always expecting us to make huge leaps toward Him. Sometimes He just wants us to take one slow and small step at a time. And just like the branch, there seems to be times when stuff, situations, worries, feelings, depression, anxieties, etc. seem to be keeping me from continuing in my walk with Christ.
God never promised me there wouldn’t be these “branches” in the way, but thankfully He did promise that He would always be there with me, and all He asks from me is to continue taking slow small steps of faith toward Him.
With the World Race coming up in August that is what I look to continue to do, taking slow small steps towards my God, no matter what seems to be standing in the way or how uneasy I might feel.
So, what slow and small step of faith is God asking you to take?
