For You Haven’t Traveled This Way Before…

At 52 years of age, I have the perspective of time. I grew up in a small town and attended small schools. Though I don’t know where all of my classmates are today, I have kept track of many of them.

Kenneth (his real name) had a laser focus on his future. He loved the outdoors, the farm, and working with animals. He dreamed of becoming a veterinarian and, perhaps one day, owning his own veterinary practice. His dad died when Kenneth was in the seventh grade. He could have used that as an excuse not to move forward. He could have wallowed in self-pity. But he didn’t. Today, Kenneth is a successful veterinarian. And he owns his own practice. He is living his dream.

Frank (not his real name) was one of the most popular guys in the school. He had it all. Good looks. Athletic abilities. An incredible mind. A wonderful personality. A great family. But I never heard Frank’s dream. I heard him blame others for any obstacles he encountered. I saw his life degenerate year by year. Today his life is in shambles. He is living his nightmare.

I am fascinated by such real-life case studies. You see, I know that, in the heart of every person, is a desire to be different, a desire to make a difference. Why then are there so few “Kenneths” of the world and too many “Franks”? Scripture has the answer.

Shortly before the Israelites were to cross the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land, leaders among the Israelites went among the people to warn them to keep a distance between themselves and the Ark of the Covenant. The priests and the ark would be at front of the people. The moment the priests’ feet touched the edge of the river, the water would part in a miraculous display of God’s power. But the people would keep their distance because, as the Bible records, “…for you haven’t traveled this way before” (Joshua 3:4 HCSB).

Those words are utterly fascinating and totally tragic. The reasons the Israelites had never traveled this way before is because their parents and grandparents refused to trust God and enter the Promised Land a generation earlier. So the children and grandchildren were doomed to spend four decades in a wilderness. Lives wasted. Opportunities forfeited.

You have this one life to live. You want to make a difference. You don’t want the end of your life to come, and look upon your days as wasted. How many times have you asked God to use your life? How many times have you prayed to Him that you want to make a difference? You don’t want to look back over your life and see forfeited opportunities. You don’t want to say, “I haven’t traveled this way before.”

Scripture is brutally honest. God does not pull punches. And in the lessons of the Israelites, we can learn our own lessons to make a difference.

We forfeit opportunities when we fear.

The Israelites were in the wilderness, just on the edge of the Promised Land, when a report came back from twelve spies (see Numbers 13 and 14). The land had everything God promised. It was rich and fruitful. Oh, it did have some mean looking people and fortified cities, but God promised He would take care of them. The response? Fear.

“We can’t do it. We will surely die.”

So a generation lost their opportunity because of fear. Have you ever said “no” because you had fear? Even when you sensed God’s promise and presence with you?

We lose opportunities to make a difference when we put comfort first.

Look at the Israelites. God frees them from slavery in Egypt, and they start complaining. “Send us back to Egypt. At least we had meat and bread there!” (see Exodus 16:3). Their comfort was their concern, not following God toward a great new life.

We miss out on God’s plan when we stay stuck in the past.

Those Israelites not only wanted their comfort, they wanted to go back to “the good old days.” And the ironic twist is that the good old days were slavery and hard labor. Their memory was deceptively selective.

How many times do we miss our own Promised Land because we are determined to experience as little change as possible? How many times does God put opportunites before us, but we decline because we like things just the way they are?

I pray that I will not get to the end of my days and look at all the opportunities I have missed, all the times I haven’t traveled this way before. Because of fear. Because of comfort. Because of my love for holding on to the past.

I pray that my life will be one that went down God’s path. And when I fear, I will trust Him for faith. And when I get too comfortable, I will look to His promise and get out of my comfort zone. And when I cling to the past, I will trust His future.

Then, and only then, will I be able to say that I have indeed traveled this path before. And it was His path. And it was good.

May it be for you was well.