Journey

And the man wondering at her held his peace,
to wit whether the LORD had made his journey prosperous or not. Gen 24.21

What is the purpose of a journey? The quick and easy answer is, “to get from one place to another”. In a simple, physical journey, the process and the destination are obvious. You get in the car (bicycle, airplane, train) and go to your destination. But there are other kinds of journeys. There is the journey from childhood to maturity. There is the journey from foolishness to wisdom. There is the journey to spiritual closeness with God.

And what do these journeys have in common?

• They take time
• They take effort
• You do not end in the same place you started
• A journey often involves hardship or unexpected experiences
• You cannot unlearn your experience
• Journeys can result in a positive or negative end point
• You often gain completely unexpected insights
• When you arrive, the journey is over
• If you do not make the effort to begin and direct the journey, you will be carried to destinations you do not desire
• Trust in the Lord is essential if the destination is to be positive

Think of all the journeys in the Bible. A few of the most well-known:

• The journey of 40 years in the wilderness
• The journey of Abraham in looking for a place to settle
• The journey of Paul to spread the Gospel

All these journeys involved a time in the wayside, a time of hardship because the comforts of home were left behind. They all had a purpose, but the purpose is God’s, not the purpose of the people who made the journey. This is because the journey was directed by God and empowered by their trust in God. And the destination, while unexpected at the beginning, resulted in more bounty than expected. Those who made the journey experienced unexpected events, and learned and grew because of these events. Just like these people who successfully completed their journeys, we should trust in God to guide our steps; but it is up to us to begin the journey while trusting God.

And commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey,
save a staff only; no scrip, no bread, no money in their purse. Mark 6.8