Sharing the road on the journey

Good morning!

I am writing this as I listen to a gentle rain falling. It is supposed to clear off later but for now the sound is peaceful and the coffee in my cup is warm and all is well.

I like peaceful times where I can think clearly. I can be a better version of me in them, but sadly such times do not make up the bulk of my existence.

Case in point.

We have a 3 mile stretch of a walking path that circles our new neighborhood.

Many nights Russ and I walk this circuit or he runs and I walk. We pass or are passed by other runners, walkers or bikers; giving a wave or a nod of the head greeting. If Russ and I are walking together we catch up on our day and if I am alone, I either listen to a sermon or just let my mind ramble through thoughts.

However last night my walk took on a different tone.

A running club was out in force.

Every few minutes another little pack would pass me. Each one had a trainer and one to three runners.

Apparently the trainer’s job was to shout encouragement to their pack.

I felt like I was at boot camp for the Marine Corps. I have never desired to be in the military so you can imagine how unnerving this whole ordeal was.

As I walked and attempted to focus on the preaching coming through my headphones, I could hear pounding footsteps coming up behind me and the echoes of the trainers ahead and behind shouting things like ….”This is your mountain! You can do it!!!!” and “Keep going (fill in a name)!!!! Good job!!!!”

And often these trainers were running backwards or retracing their steps to urge someone on who had fallen behind the group.

I may have mentioned I have ADHD tendencies and I mean that in great respect for the disorder because I genuinely struggle with focusing my mind and eliminating exterior distractions.

So my walk that was supposed to be a stress reliever became quite stress-filled as all of this was going on.

Finally and blissfully the last group passed me and I was able to finish my walk in peace.

I also had time to muse over the experience and realize it is a somewhat accurate picture of my life most days.

I felt out of sync with the crowd around me, which happens a lot in my every day life. Opinions and thoughts and beliefs that are contrary to my way of thinking fly at me from many sources each day and I am forced to process those and often expected to respond in a positive way.

My internal struggle was real but it was private.

The runners were not doing anything wrong nor was I, we just had different goals for using that path. We had to share space and while in this case, I had to flex and adapt to the noise and energy they were emitting and work to maintain my focus.

Other nights, I am the one on the bike who is having to call out “coming up on your left” to a couple of quiet walkers who are chatting their way around the circle and must move over for me to pass.

We live in community with people and sometimes we rub up against one another in ways that interrupt our agenda.

Part of our sanctification involves releasing our need to have everything the way we like it and surrendering our perceived rights and privileges so that others can thrive in the same spaces we are making our way through.

In my devotions this morning, God showed me a truth based on the question “Why do you suppose God doesn’t give grace to proud people?” James 4:6

My answer came so quickly, I know it was from a wisdom I could not have without Him.

“I don’t think He withholds it, I think He just truthfully can’t give it to them. Grace is a gift that has to be received. The proud cannot receive it. Just as a jar with a lid tightly sealed cannot receive the pouring in of a liquid, the proud heart is tightly shut and unable to receive the in-pouring of grace.”

Do you struggle sometimes with giving others space on the path?

You are not alone.

God is with us to help us be sweet and courteous. He is with us when our minds and hearts struggle to maintain focus in the noise of this world. He understands how we are made and His love is poured into our hearts when we surrender our will to have our own way and say “Lord, I am a willing vessel. Fill me up with Your grace today.”

Be blessed as you journey onward <3

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