Pr. 2:13: “From those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness;”
We just spent the weekend deep in the mountains of West Virginia. My family is blessed to have some land where we can reunite and unwind. A few years ago some of my cousins made a new trail in the woods up on the mountain behind our house to mark the property line. The trail they cut out is wide enough for a 4-wheeler or my cousin Mark’s off-road vehicle called ‘the mule.’
All the kids love to ride on Mark’s mule, and they made several trips on that trail over the weekend. My dad was taking the kids for one of the rides and I joined them. This was my first time on the trail and I saw there were some smaller paths leading off to the side. I noted that my dad always took the path to the right and he confirmed that the main trail went to the right. He said the smaller paths were dead ends that were made for other purposes.
This verse reminds me of that trail and those other paths. If you got on that main trail for the first time and didn’t know which way to head, you could easily wind up on the wrong path. Instead of an hour long walk down a path that’s been laid out, you could wind up hitting every dead-end there is, and spend several hours just trying to find where the trail lets out. (View of trail’s exit below)
Almost Heaven, West Virginia
The Lord has a path clearly laid out for us all, and you can find the directions in the Word. Without knowing or heeding the Word, we often try to take those paths off the main trail, but they are dead ends that only lead to darkness, sin, pain, and ultimately death. We don’t have to create new paths or take the paths towards darkness. Keeping the word in our hearts, we can stay on the path of uprightness, which leads to eternal life.
Stay on the path today and do not let yourself be lured by the paths of darkness. Those smaller paths will ensnare you, trap you, and will not let out in heaven. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” If you need to know the way, His name is Jesus. He was in the beginning with God: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” If you know the Word, you know Jesus, and you will get to the Father through Him.” (John 1:1) Continue to the right. Heaven awaits!
Trusting in Jesus,
jamie
considering the word 