Steps in the Snow

Deuteronomy 31:8 - “The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you, He will never leave you nor forsake you.”

God wants us to follow in His steps! It sounds simple in theory, but how often do we actually go where He leads us? How often do we say, “Yeah, God! Sure… Definitely going your way…” while walking in the other direction?

When I was young, my brother, mother, and I would visit family in the north. Sometimes, the snow would get knee-deep, making it exhausting for kids like us to walk through it! So our mom would walk ahead of us, having us walk in her footsteps as her boots packed down the snow and cleared a small path!

Imagine how much harder it would have been if we decided to look at our mother’s path, say “nah,” and go the other way! But of course, we were kids. Stubborn, clueless, and determined to do it ourselves. Sometimes we’d go our own way, only to get stuck in the deep, shiver in the cold, or pause because we’d gone too far from mom.

Our mom didn’t clear the path for no reason. She did it to keep us close, safe from freezing in knee-deep snow, and make our journey easier. But there is a key word here- easier. Not perfect, not ideal, not pain-free. The snow was still there, we still got cold, we still had to tread through it.

And just like how my mom made a path for us, God makes paths for us as well! The Lord doesn’t send us out blindly, He has gone before us. He knows every step, every twist, and every struggle we will encounter.

But just like stubborn children, sometimes we think that we have a better way, even though His perfect path might be right in front of us. We get distracted, stubborn… proud.

His path doesn’t promise ease or comfort, but it does promise closeness. God’s path is wiser, safer, and we can trust it, because He only wants the best for us and our lives!

We don’t have to figure everything out, we just have to follow the One who does!