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.
