If I Walk Into The Bramble
What if sometimes there be mist and fogs so thick I cannot see the path? It is enough that you hold my hand, and guide me in the darkness; for walking with you in the gloom is far sweeter and safer than walking alone in the sunlight! - Susannah Spurgeon
It is not that God hides his path from us, He does not take us down pathways only to leave us there with nothing but an intersection ahead. I imagine God standing there on the main path watching me as I run into some beautiful meadow and pick flowers to take home and put in vases. And there I am admiring the vase of flowers all perfectly arranged now inside my house. Is He still standing there on that main path, outside, far away?
It isn’t that I don’t want to follow; I do but at times my mind forgets I’m following anyone at all. My eyes see more scenic routes, my ears hear laughter and fun further back and I want to turn around. I want to taste the fruit off the tree in the middle of the garden. But I am on this narrow pathway with my Creator.
I trust He loves me because it seems each time I leave Him to go my own way he remains there, steadfast, strong and always the same. The same love. The same chastisement of a gentle Father that wants to teach rather than give me the murderous blow of the enemy. That is how I know the difference between God who is slow to anger and Satan who is quick to kill.
The more I get to know who God really is the more I want to go a little further with Him. So I pray for bramble that catches on my skin as I try to go the wrong way. It can be like Gideon putting the fleece out to know for certain God’s direction. I know God does not always reveal all His plans at once. He asks for one obedient step at a time whether we see clearly or not.
I think it’s okay to invite God to reveal what trips us up and makes us get lost along the way. I need to know, that the hedge of bramble with its small sticky thorn is God’s personal way of saying to me that going through here is the wrong way. And what is a small prick from a thorn compared to getting lost once again.
“The path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble. Proverb 4:18-19
Cathy Donald:
Jennifer, thank you for this post! You paint a vivid picture. I felt like I was walking with you. I too am prone to losing track of who I am following from time to time. I agree, God is patiently waiting for us.