As most of you know by now I live in Redding Ca. and I love it! There are many who have spent a long time trying to get away from Redding and I have never understood it. I have heard many say that they love to vacation here and I know why. We are blessed with some of the most beautiful country. I try to spend at least one day a week exploring it and in doing so getting closer to God. I tend to do this on two wheels. Either on my dirt bike or my mountain bike. As most others I have my favorite trails. They can become favorites for so many reasons. A great downhill with some good hits, some fast singletracks lined with indian paint brush and covered with oaks and pine trees, or a technical ascent with some fun rock gardens. In having these favorites we tend to stick to them and we don't move on to others. I am so very much a creature of habit. I have my favorites and love sticking to their familiar curves, hills, roots and other obstacles. They have become familiar and safe for me because I know what to expect around each turn and over each hill. I can slide around each corners and fly over each rock garden knowing what to expect. This is a blast!!! But, oh yes the infamous "but", I am not stepping out of my safety zone. It is challenging to ride these same rides over and over again and to try and improve on my technique but it is still the same safe trail again and again. There is something tragic in this though. There is a whole world out there and if I only stay on the familiar and never reach out then I will always only get the same thing over and over again and never get to experience the world. On this last ride I tried something new.
I went riding with someone new this time and was shown some different trails. I was a bit nervous about riding them. I didn't want to go into something that I wasn't familiar with. It is scary for me to try something new. What if I come around a corner that is tighter than expected and go off a cliff or into a tree. What if the trail is all torn up and loose with large rocks. What if I feel pain from rocks, manzanita, or other unexpected obstacles. I fear the pain, the new, the road less traveled. You see the fork in the road that I came upon had a trail to the left that was covered in familiarity. It is a fun down hill with a half dozen switch backs. There is a root on the down hill side of the trail at one part that you can jump off of and bounce over to the up hill side of the trail and ride the wall of the trail. I know that the loose leaves on the trail will make my tires slide a certain way around the switch backs. But to the right....
To the right the trail climbs up a slow incline that has been rarely used. You can see that the trail is rarely rode and it looks a bit ominous. Once again I am faced with the fears and doubts of this new trail. But what if I take this leap of faith and follow the suggestion of a friend? What if I take that trail that is new to me and rarely used? What if I take the trail that looks difficult instead of the trail that I'm used to? So I take that leap of faith. I jump on that bike and as soon as I'm around the corner I can see that I'm in for a great ride! The trail is tight with a good drop off on the left side. I can take it fast but there are sharp turns and fun obstacles to challenge me along the way. I'm moving quick, sliding into corners and pumping hard out of them. I'm smiling and my hearts beating faster and faster. I'm thanking God for this day and the ability to ride this trail. I'm thanking God for putting me right here right now. This is what life is all about. This is that trust in God, that leap of faith that doesn't make sense at first but the rewards are far to great when you have that faith. I leave the trail with a fresh scratch on my arm from the manzanita but feeling so alive! I knew that there was that chance that I could feel pain or crash hard but I had faith and the rewards were great!
I struggle with surrendering every part of my life to God and just taking that leap of faith in God. When I do He never lets me down. It might not be what I always want but it is always what is best for me. He cares for me like His very own son even when I struggle with my faith in Him. So I thank Him.
God thank you for seeing into my heart and still loving me. Thank you for always having faith in me God. I don't deserve it but you still shower me with your blessing. Thank you for the courage when it's just doesn't make sense to follow you. I pray that you are patient with me as I stumble through my faith in you God. I thank you for all of the patience that you have shown so far. I thank you for all of those hard times that you used to bring me closer to you God and for using them to show me your faith and love in me. I thank you for the life that I live and for all of the blessed moments that I get experience every day. In your name I pray these things, AMEN!
6 comments:
I came to see if you had written anything new and lo and behold!! There was a new blog, with a great picture. The picture instantly reminded me of my favorite poem. When I was in high school we sang an arrangement if it in choir and I fell in love with it. The words were set to a simple, beautiful melody that has stuck with me for all of the years since.
Then, I began to read what you had written, and I knew I had to share this poem with you:
The Road Not Taken By Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
I keep coming back to this poem as I pursue a deeper walk with Jesus. I know that my walk has taken me places that a lot of people never choose to go, mostly because the path is unknown and might often look overgrown from lack of use. Everyone told me that I should take a different path. My family judged me and at one point wouldn't talk to me on account of my choices to follow God in a way that was unfamiliar. It hurt deeply, but I knew the road I had to take.
I think back on it and the last line resonates so deeply that I get all choked up thinking about it. "I took the one less traveled by and that has made all the difference."
And it has been worth it. It's been hard, and there have been times I have wanted to throw in the towel, but by his grace I am tethered to him. I have danced and sang in joy, I've cried and mourned the been healed and made whole... It's been an incredible journey thus far.
I don't know how you feel about choral music, but you can listen to it here
greetings, o master of metaphor!! this was an awesome piece, caleb!! ;o)
it's definitely easier to go where it's familiar; it doesn't mean we'll be unchallenged, but it does mean we'll be more comfortable. there are bound to be bumps, bruises, & scratches on the new & more difficult path (the road less traveled by, i love that jessica put robert frost here!!), but like you said ... the rewards are incredible!!
there's a really burly hike around here that's about 5 miles almost straight up. my legs & back killed the next day. but the view from the top ... oh my goodness, you can't beat that. and you can't get there with a car or from behind. you've got to walk up to see it. it's amazing.
i do love the photo on there!! you take some fantastic pics, friend.
blessings to you today!
Oi vey, you people who write well. I'm gonna have to take up a new hobby. Maybe my son is right and I should spend my time on-line playing World of Warcraft with him!
Caleb, sounds like a beautiful part of the world and a beautiful message received in the new ride. Almost enough to make me want to get out and ride a bike. Almost...
I had promised both you and Jessica responses to some questions. My apologies! The family and I were laid low with a nasty stomach bug over the weekend, so not much that was planned actually got done.
sJessica- My dear friend, I sure do love our chats. Thank you so much for the Robert Frost poem. I think that I need to read it a few more times to really let it sink in. I'm so proud of you for making the decisions that God wanted you to make instead of the popular one. Isn't it fun when things that don't seem to make any sense at all just come out working out perfect like asking someone to get their hair cut with you ;o)
Kirsten- You bless me again. A compliment from you on writing really does mean something to me and encourages me to do more of the same. In regards to that hill....are dirt bikes aloud? If not how hard would it be for them to catch me? Broo haha!!!
Dean- It's good to hear from you again. I'm so sorry to hear about the stomach bug. I'm a miserable sick person!!! I become a big baby. Broken bones and trauma related stuff are bearable but not being sick. My heart goes out to you and your family. I hope that this finds you feeling better. Don't worry about getting back to me any time soon. Maybe you'll have to find your way to the west coast of the states sometime. Jessica, Kirsten and I are all here.
I hope that all of you are smiling and well as you read this. You are all in my thoughts and prayers. Thank you for dropping in leaving your thoughts.
Hi Caleb--found you on Dean's blog. My grandparents used to live in Redding (well...they lived there for most of my life) and I remember it fondly. Your picture takes me back to days spent riding and grooming my grandpa's horse ;)
Take care. You're a swell writer.
Sara- I'm glad that my blog could help bring back those fond memories. It has been so interesting since I've come in contact with Dean, I feel very blessed. Thanks for dropping in.
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