"God sustained Jacob in a desert land, in a howling wilderness waste"
Deuteronomy 32:10a
Today, I am thankful for the times of wilderness journey experienced in The United Methodist Church.
As a less metaphorical understanding, I have become known for leading excursions through the back woods at Canyon Camp affectionately known as "death hikes".
To be clear, no one has ever died on one of these hikes and we've always brought back everyone who went!
Now sometimes we have had to make stops at the nurse's station on the way back - usually for scrapes, bug bites or poison ivy.
Most of the time, we take the group through the swamp and up to the next ridge. It is a beautiful view and my favorite thing is to see the turkey buzzards flying around at the same level as you're looking as they soar above the valley below.
When we get that far out and away from recognizable trails, I usually get a lot of nervous questions. The main one is, "Are you sure you know where you're going?"
I usually answer, "Yeah, pretty much. Sometimes the trail changes but overall, I know where we are in relation to the main camp."
This answer is sometimes not assuring enough for some!
The wilderness experience is to remove oneself from civilization. No cell phone coverage or WiFi! When you are out and can see nothing made by humans, it is a bit freeing. Now we are walking through the living area of wild creatures.
Once, we came across a mother turkey buzzard on a ledge that was feeding her babies in their nest. I saw her hack up something she had partially digested and the smell was really bad! Then she saw us and started hissing - we moved on pretty quickly but it was an honor to intrude for a moment on their life together without knowing we were there.
A lot of kids never sign up for this hike. Some who go find it very challenging and don't ever go back. Others have found it refreshing and it feeds their soul to leave everything behind for an hour or two.
Some youth find out that getting wet or muddy or scraped or scratched won't kill them. After they come through it, they feel more like a survivor.
This is important for us to remember as we face the more metaphorical wilderness times in our lives. For those facing divorce, it may feel that they have been abandoned. For churches going through disaffiliation, it may feel like this as well.
As a pastor, I've said that my current work as a district superintendent is the most challenging I've ever faced in my ministry. There are times I may be asking God the same question that youth ask me on the hike. "Are you sure you know where we are going?"
God's answer may be similar to mine, "Yeah, pretty much. Sometimes the trail changes but overall, I know where we are in relation to the main camp."
I may get bruised or scratched along the way but in the end, I'll trust God to get us through. And along the way, we may discover resilience that will help us confront something in the future.
During Lent, what wilderness journeys have you faced in your life? Where did God help you along the way? Who did you have to help guide you through? How did they make you a stronger person?
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