(This pic wasn't actually taken at the "sidewalk trail", but it's that same day. My battery died before we got to the canyon - can you believe that!?!)
At any rate, the sidewalk trail we took along the southern perimeter of the Grand Canyon was indeed beautiful. You can't hardly go wrong with woods on one side and the Grand Canyon on the other. And there was snow all around to boot! But here's the thing. That trail was kind of crowded.
Granted it was February and cold so there weren't nearly as many people on this trail as you might find on, say, July 3rd. But even on this obscure winter day with ice and snow covering the path and no sun in the sky, we encountered person after person on this trail.
Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it." He described a path that is less traveled but oh so much more desirable than the sidewalk trails that most people stick to.
Let's consider what kind of path we're on. Am I on a sidewalk trail where "there are many" others walking with me? Or am I off the beaten path, on a trail found by few?
While the sidewalk path may serve a purpose at the Grand Canyon, it's not the trail for those following after Jesus. The sidewalk path may be more easy to navigate, may be filled with friendly folks, and might even have enticing conveniences like water fountains along the way, but it's not the road that leads to life everlasting. The sidewalk path eventually ends, you see, and Jesus says its destination is destruction.
So how do you know what path you're on? Just look around you. How crowded is it? You see, as much as we'd like to think that everyone's on a path to heaven (even if it be their own individually designed path), that just isn't true. Jesus said there's only one way to heaven and He's it. According to Him, not many will choose to follow Him and there will be few on this narrow trail.
Yesterday I urged us all to link up with a local church family so we wouldn't be traveling alone. Remember, no lone rangers! But the truth is we shouldn't be on a crowded trail either. While most people are sticking to the sidewalk trail, we need to be off the beaten path.
So, if your life looks like everyone else's, if your life is heading in the same direction as everyone else's and if your life is on such a trail of ease that, looking down, you realize you're actually on a sidewalk trail, oops. Wrong trail.
