The road is long with many a winding turn.

Camino

What lies beyond the curve?

As He whispers “Follow Me,”

Oh teach me Thy ways.

It shall come to pass in the latter days
    that the mountain of the house of the Lord
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
    and shall be lifted up above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow to it,
       and many peoples shall come, and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
    to the house of the God of Jacob,
that He may teach us His ways
    and that we may walk in His paths.” Isaiah 2:2-3

All the nations shall flow; many peoples shall come.

That He may teach us His ways

And that we may walk in His paths.

And yesterday I sorta randomly joined a MeetUp hiking club with a bunch of people I didn’t know for a moonlit hike labeled “hard,” scrabbling up the decomposed granite of the Coronado National Forest.  Yes, Saguaro cacti are a forest.

So now I know a few more pretty chill, sturdy people in Tucson.

photos by Daniel Oliver

But the amazing thing for me about this journey is the clicks on my Facebook post with a perspective shot of the path. And all of the many peoples who have joined in my camino, my picking up my figurative walking poles and following Him, not only my beloved family and folks from Prince or the Vineyard or every possible point in of my forty-five years in the ever-sprawling Old Pueblo, but delightful lightbearers from all the nations: Mexico, Italy, Czech Republic, Spain, Brazil, Palestine, Iraq, Iran, and China.

Bing, bing, bing.

Every single one of those names bring a smile to my heart. And each has been an encouragement, a shoulder to lean on, hands to bind up blistered bits and pieces, a warm hand up or an outstretched espresso.

The flow.

And once again I am reminded of C. S. Lewis, of course, and The Last Battle, and the flow of all the nations and all the peoples through the massive portal, when at last these broken and aching times draw to an end, and at last justice rolls down like a river:

The new Narnia was a deeper country: every rock and flower and blade of grass looked as if it meant more. I can’t describe it any better than that: if you ever get there you will know what I mean.

It was the Unicorn who summed up what everyone was feeling. He stamped his right forehoof on the ground and neighed, and then cried:

“I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now. The reason why we loved the old Narnia is that it sometimes looked a little like this. Bree-hee-hee! Come further up, come further in!”

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever He may send you;

May He guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm;

May He bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders He has shown you;

May He bring you home rejoicing : once again through these doors.