A Fork in the Trail

Have you ever been trail riding and arrived at a fork in the trail like this? As this picture depicts you have to make a choice. Do I take the path on the left or the path on the right? If the trail is not clearly marked it can be difficult to decide which way to go.

I remember clearly a time when one of my daughters and I became hopelessly lost on the trails in a state park. We had never ridden at this particular park before and were there with a group of riders. The trails were much rockier than we were accustomed to riding. Since our horses were not shod, their feet began to get a little sore. It was clear that some of the other riders were becoming impatient with our slow pace. Rather than holding back the whole group we assured them that we would be fine and that they should go ahead without us. The trails were poorly marked and I could make no sense of the trail map. When we came to forks in the trail I tried to use my sense of direction to guide us back to the camp, but after a while it became increasingly obvious to me that my sense of direction was not very good that day.

It was getting late and I was getting tired. I was also worried about our horses' condition. We were at another fork in the trail and I had no idea which way led back to camp so we were taking a break and pondering our choice. We had seen no other riders since we parted with our group. Remember Balaam and his donkey that spoke to him? Right about this time we heard someone coming up behind us on the trail. It wasn't a donkey, but it was a man and woman riding on mules. I was sure glad to see them! They were happy to give us directions for getting back to camp. The direction they told me to turn was the opposite direction I had planned to go.

It certainly would have been scary if we had made the wrong turn there and wandered the trails in the darkness, however I'm sure someone eventually would have come looking for us. What can be even more disastrous is when we take a wrong turn at critical forks in our lives. Just like we have choices about which way to go on a horse trail, we also face big decisions about which way to go in life. The consequences of those decisions sometimes have a lifelong negative impact on our lives.

How many people have chosen to go down the wrong path through choosing to become involved with alcohol or drugs? Others choose to drop out of school. Many decide to marry someone that is not who God had in mind for them because they are too impatient to wait. The best way to avoid making disastrous choices is to know God's word very well and to base your decisions upon it. Seek God's direction through prayer and the advice of godly people you know.

God will guide us on our path through life if we just keep listening for Him. Isaiah 30:27 "Your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' whenever you turn to the right hand or whenever you turn to the left."