Tuesday With Teri

What is worse than gravel to a ten year old, tender pawed, porky little yorkie? Cold gravel.   Today as I went to walk Hughie, the previously mentioned yorkie, this became quite obvious.

Each time I take him for a walk he must cross over a small gravel parking lot to get to a grassy area frequented by he and other pets.  He usually inches over the terrain as if walking on egg shells, lifting each paw higher than needed and gingerly setting it down. Today, the cold gravel was the challenge separating him from his grassy “promise land”.  What should have taken only a few minutes became a half hour ordeal.

He has discovered a path around most of the gravel area.  He follows the dock all the way to the end of the lot, where there is a small paved section.  He crosses over to the landscaped flower boxes surrounding the marina office and jumps up on the landscaping timbers. He follows the flower bed until it takes him to a small patch of grass on the side of the building.  He is then able to walk along a nearby fence taking advantage of some boards that have been discarded there. When he runs out of boards, he stands at the edge and looks at me in hopes that I will pick him up and carry him over the next patch of grass, which of course I do.

This morning as I watched him navigate the gravel barrier before him, I thought of my life and our God.

There are places in our journey where we encounter things we’d rather avoid.  I have walked haltingly across many seasons of my life, unsure of my steps, dreading the impact of my efforts.  I too have tried to avoid certain situations that bring me discomfort.  I certainly know I have come to a place and time when all I did was look up and hope God would lift me up and set me somewhere more comfortable.

I did not rescue Hughie from every situation, he is after all a dog and therefore must walk on his own, but I did allow him to find his own way.  Ultimately, I picked him up when he reached a place that was too difficult for him.

Today, I do not face great challenges.  Today, I may only find my path lined with soft grass, but today I will be mindful that I have God who knows my steps.  I have a God Who walks with me.  I have a God Who will pick me up and place me as He deems necessary.  I have a God Who knows that sometimes life is like cold gravel and I need help in my walk.

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.  He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”  Psalm 23:1-3