Zipline faith

This morning as I was having my quiet time, I was asking God what his plan was for my future. You see, I've been out of work for almost a year now and that's been very difficult for me. I started working when I was 15 years old and for the last 40 years I have spent every single day working. When you've had a set routine like that for many years and then all of a sudden you wake up and everything has changed it's very challenging. With the economy like it is, it has been very difficult to find a new job. So over the past year I have spent much time in prayer drawing closer to God and seeking his will for my life during this time in my journey.

I'm a very visual person and God knows this because he created me! So usually in my prayer time he gives me little visions to help me understand the answers to my prayers. This morning, God gave me a vision that is so unique that I thought it might bless others and so I am sharing it with you here today. He took me back to a time in my childhood when I was outdoors. Our next door neighbors had installed a zip line between two trees in their backyard. Now it wasn't anything like the zip lines that we have today, but it was very similar. It was "kid sized" if you know what I mean...it was about 10 feet off the ground at the highest point and about 4 feet off the ground at the lowest point. It ran about 50 yards long and to an 8 year old, that seems pretty severe! We'd start out on the zip line scared to death and then by the middle of the journey, we'd be squealing with glee because we were having so much fun! With the wind in our hair as we'd go zooming past our friends, we'd be laughing and having a blast!

As I was remembering the fun we used to have on that zip line and how I was so scared to try it for the very first time, He gave me a vision of a very different zip line but you have to understand on this one, I couldn't see the beginning or the end of His zip line. All I could see was the middle. I could see a large hand fastening a carabiner onto the zip line. Now if you're not familiar with zip lines, let me explain a little. Zip lines today are very high up and in fact, most of them go over tree tops! There's usually a platform that you have to climb up to get to the zip line and then when you're up there, you're suited up with a helmet and a type of harness. You are attached to the zip line with a cable and a carabiner type clip to help you slide along the line toward your destination which is usually another platform much further away...even miles away!

God gave me the understanding that the zip line I was seeing represented my journey in life. I couldn't see the beginning and I surely couldn't see the end but He could.  The carabiner represented  faith so when I trust God, I allow myself through faith to travel along the zip line of my life not knowing where it will go or where a will end.

The journey may be slow at first and then pick up speed, it may be superfast and then slow down, only God knows. There may be times along the journey that I just get to look out and enjoy the beautiful view or there may be times when I am sad and discouraged because of what I see. There may be times when the journey takes twists and turns that I did not expect. There may be pleasant surprises or scary situations. There may be times when I unhook my carabiner of faith and disembark from the zip line, these are times when I choose my own path instead of following the path God has  chosen for me. But as long as I stay clipped in and hold on tightly to my faith, I can trust that God will take me where he wants me to go. I can trust that he will allow the good things and the not so good things for my benefit and my growth.

God also reminded me of the verse in Jeremiah 29: 11 "for I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a future and I hope." Since I know that God has a specific plan for me and that he loves me; I can choose to trust him completely. Even though I have no idea where my path will go; I know that God will always be with me because He says in His word, "I will never, no never, no never, leave you or forsake you."

Traveling through life on a zip line of faith doesn't need to be something that frightens us! Instead, it can be a beautiful adventure if we only choose to put our trust in the one who loves us more than  anyone else. I am thankful that God gave me the vision of zip line faith this morning. I know God has a marvelous plan for my life and for your life too. Even though we can't see the next part of our journey, God already has it planned out completely.  He gives us just enough faith for the next part of the journey and when we have completed that leg, he gives us more faith for the next part.

Don't be afraid to clip on your carabiner of faith, step off the platform, and take the ride of your life with God! He's right there with you and He has a marvelous journey that He's planned specifically for you. He'll never leave you...He'll be right there with you...so go ahead, now's the time...take the leap of faith and zoom into your future!