Lead me on level ground!

Teach me to do your will for you are my God, may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Psalms 143:10

This past April my husband and I took a trip of a lifetime to Hawaii. It was fabulous! While there we were the typical tourists taking in all the sites and enjoying the tropical islands. We booked special tours that would allow us to see parts of the island that we couldn’t get to by car. One of our favorite tours was when we kayaked up the river into the rain forest to a Secret Water fall. The only way to get to the Secret Waterfall was to go by kayak and then hike a trail through the rain forest.

On the day of our tour we started at 7 a.m. in the morning meeting our tour guide and getting a kayak lesson. We were at the mercy of our tour guide for the day as to what to do and where to go. The guide got us started in the kayak and away we paddled down the river which was calm and easy. There was not a lot to navigate until it came time to stop. We pulled our kayaks ashore and wondered which way next? It all looked the same to me and my husband. Once again we looked to our trusted tour guide for direction. We had no idea where to go!

However, our tour guide was exceptional! He was very knowledgeable of the rainforest, the trail, and was concerned about our safety. He would tell us where to watch our step and tell us when to follow him for a detour. He knew the danger spots of the trail where water washes out or rocks slide. He said the trail can always change, but he knew the way. Some of the trail was rocky, up hill, twisting, and through the wet ground of a rainforest. At one point, we were walking on the very edge of a cliff with no rails and a raging river below us. As long as we stepped where the guide instructed all was great! We followed him so that we would stay on course and be safe. Can you imagine the trip without a tour guide? We may still be there today! I was so thankful for our tour guide. He led us to a beautiful waterfall that was breathtaking! I love waterfalls, and this Secret Waterfall was 130 feet tall, undisturbed, hidden in the mountains of Kauai, Hawaii. Beautiful!

In remembrance of this awesome experience I can’t help, but to compare it to my walk with God. God so desires to lead me on level ground that He has given me the Holy Spirit as my own personal “tour guide” through this journey of life. I can be led through good times and the bad times because He knows the way and His word says, “He will never let the righteous fall”. I can go through life balanced and steady no matter what is going on around me. How often do we attempt a journey, tasks, and even daily life without a tour guide? We try to handle it all and be in control, as if we know the way and what is best. We try to juggle the husband, kids, house, career, church, and all of it sometimes following our own plan rarely consulting the tour guide. If we will allow God to lead us and trust him like I did the tour guide, He will always lead us on level ground even if life gets like a raging river. Sure, we may have some hills, and valleys, but the Holy Spirit will always lead us the best way. We have to ask the Holy Spirit to be the “tour guide” for the day, give him permission to lead, and trust His guidance! Every morning we need to ask him to teach us to do His will and then be led by the Spirit on level ground. We all need help not to get entangled by the confusion of a wrong path, a mistaken turn, or to step off into the unknown without asking for his guidance.

I challenge you to ask yourself and God where you have stepped off the level ground without His guidance. I encourage you to stop and follow your “tour guide”. The Holy Spirit will lead you on the level ground that God has laid out for you. The journey to the beauty of all that God has for you will be worth it because He so desires to pour out His spiritual blessings along the way. Why not follow Him, walk in peace, and in step with a solid footing rather than going out on your own? Seek God, Seek the Ultimate Tour Guide, and walk through life on LEVEL GROUND!!