My Path

I keep seeing this vision of walking down a road. The goal is in front of me and it's simple: glorify God and enjoy Him forever. As I focus on the goal I know that He will take care of everything that is really necessary in my life. As long as I maintain focus I am at peace. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Unfortunately, all along the sides of this same simple path are people yelling at me. Their one goal is to make me turn my head. If I walk off the path that is a bonus. Their names are not those of glaringly obvious sins. They are simple things like nutrition, exercise, fashion, organics, health, popularity, beauty, conservation. On their own, none of the things that are screaming at me are intrinsically evil. In fact, some would call them good. It's simply the fact that they are attempting to make me take my eyes off the goal.

As walk along the path, each of these things is taken care of. I am kept healthy because God shows me when to exercise or rest, or eat the right foods. He shows me how to parent, and how to present myself in a way that is fashionable. As I do these things I become more like Him and His glory shining through me makes those around me want what I have.

The problem is that each of these simple things is a god when it becomes my focus. Each of these things can become it's own separate path. A path that can deceive me with it's logic. Of course it's important to eat right and exercise, but I find as I start to focus on that aspect of life that there is a never-ending rabbit trail to follow. Everyone has an opinion on what it means and how much effort to put into it, until I am dizzy trying to sort through what is true and what is unnecessary. "Do I take vitamins? What vitamins do I take? Are they natural or synthetic? Did they come from environmentally sustainable companies? Do they dissolve in my system? Are they in the right proportions? Do they include the correct amounts of each nutrient?" The list goes on.

And yet it can be so simple... eyes on the prize, and let God take care of the details.

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life^[b]?

²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.