The Journey: A Thanksgiving Message

I have been thinking about analogies that are commonly used to describe what people go through who have serious illnesses.  One common analogy is the “war analogy”.  Although there a times the war analogy may be helpful, I don’t particularly like this analogy.

An alternative to the war analogy I prefer is “life as a journey”.  As I have reflected on this analogy, I’ve thought about the many hikes I have made to the top of Mount Le Conte in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.  On these trips with family and friends, our final destination has always been the Mount Le Conte Lodge on the mountain top.  The Mount Le Conte Lodge was built in the 1930s and is only accessible by several hiking trails which end at the mountain top including Alum Cave Trail, Bull Head Trail, Rainbow Falls Trail, Trillium Gap Trail, and The Boulevard Trail.

I have reached the top of Mount Le Conte and the lodge hiking all the trails mentioned above.  Each one of these trails is different.  Some are longer.  Some have more ups and downs.  Some have steep climbs.  Some have long, flat stretches.  On some you must walk across creeks on slippery rocks, others have few natural hazards.  On one trail, hikers must traverse a narrow ledge holding onto cables on the cliff wall which help prevent one from slipping and sliding down a steep slope.  Especially when this ledge is covered by snow and ice, the thought has run through my head, “I really, really don’t want to walk out on this ledge!”.   Without the help of the cables strongly secured into the rock, especially because I have a touch of acrophobia, I doubt I would cross this ledge even without the additional challenge of snow and ice underfoot.

Most of my trips to Mount Le Conte have been in winter and early spring.  Consequently, along with family and friend hiking companions, I have hiked through some fairly severe winter conditions including intense cold (like 10 degrees cold!), blowing snow, and two feet deep snow at the top.  Honesty, during many of these hikes, the thought really motivating me to keep hiking was thinking about what awaited me at the top – a warm, safe lodge with steaming hot chocolate around a stove, then a scrumptious beef roast supper with a glass of wine, more fun around the stove talking and playing games with family and friends, and then wonderful sleep in a cozy bed with thick wool blankets.

One of the things I enjoyed the most about sitting around the stove or at supper with my hiking companions and other hikers we just met was sharing stories about each of our journeys up the mountain.  Typically, each hiking party had taken a different trail and faced different circumstances.  Some hikers shared that their journeys had been fairly easy.  Others shared how difficult their journeys had been.  Everyone had unique experiences on their journeys, both good and bad.  However, one thing we all had in common – we had made it to the top and were now enjoying fellowship together and the common bond of facing whatever challenges came up during the day and all ending up at the same place – safe, sound and happy.

By now, you have probably sensed why I prefer the “journey analogy” to the “war analogy” for not just those facing serious illnesses, but for everyone going through the journey we call life.  In a war, there are always, winners and losers.  In a war, we expect the winner to be the military with the strongest and best-performing soldiers.  In a war, we probably do not have much respect for the losers, because, well, they are losers.

For those on a faith in God journey through life, however, there are only winners.  We are guaranteed to reach the end of our life trail and the safety, comfort and joy of our heavenly mountain top lodge where the hot chocolate is smoother, the wine is richer, and the fellowship more joyful.  The trail each of us takes on our journey to our heavenly home is unique, with different circumstances, challenges and good and bad experiences.

Some of heavenly home journeys are shorter than others, just as some journeys to the top of Mount Le Conte are shorter than others depending on the trail the hiker takes.  The trail and journey to our heavenly home for some people is fraught with challenges and hardships, while the trail and journey for others seems relatively easy and uneventful, just as some hikes to the top of Mount Le Conte turn out to be very hard, and some more easy.

Why the Lord takes us down different trails on our journey home, I don’t know.  But I do know that he helps us along the way, like placing secure cables in the cliff for us to hold unto to keep us from plummeting into the abyss.  For me, the most secure of these cables is the Gospel which does not state what we need to accomplish in life to get to our heavenly home, but rather what Christ has already done for us which guarantees we will make it there no matter how many hardships or failures we experience along the way.

As I think back on my journeys up to the top of Mount Le Conte, I remember both good times when the trip was great fun, and bad times when I was feeling tired and miserable.  If you asked me now if I would still have gone on these trips knowing I would experience both pleasures and pains, I would say “yes!” without hesitation.  Our journeys through life also involves both pleasures and pains.  But if you asked me if it were possible to know that my life would involve both great joys and great sorrows, would I rather have never been born (like George Bailey in the fictional movie “It’s a Wonderful Life”), I would quickly say “no!”  Having the opportunity to experience the joys of life and hopefully have a positive impact on the lives of others, with the certainty of unlimited, eternal joy at the end of the trail makes this earthly life journey worthwhile.  So like George Bailey at the close of the movie, I want to live even if life events do not always turn out how I would like for myself and others.

Not one of us knows for sure how much longer our journey to our heavenly home will last.  In the meantime, let us try to remember and focus on the pleasures of our journeys while acknowledging the challenges and pains along the way.  Joy and sorrow are a part of everyone’s life journey.  Without going through some of the challenges and sorrows inherent in climbing Mount Le Conte, I would have never experienced the joys and happiness of the lodge and fellowship among fellow hikers at the top. The same goes for the journey of life.  Without going through the challenges and sorrows which are an inherent part of living in this broken world, we would not have also had the opportunity to experience all the great joys and happy times.

So, here’s to both the joys and sorrows of our life journeys and the promise that we will “win” and arrive safely at our heavenly home.  Then, all the minor and major aches and pains of our journey will be healed and we will enjoy forever the sweet fellowship of drinking the best hot chocolate and wine with those who all those who are already home or will be arriving soon, all the while being warmed by the love and grace of Jesus – the one who prepared our room in the mountain top lodge and made sure we made it there safe and secure.  For all this I am very thankful!