The Walk of Faith

While seeking to stay on the strait, narrow way
   I encountered a fork in the road,
And although neither track from the journey turned back,
   Still my footsteps I thoughtfully slowed.

I bowed to the Lord, giving thanks for His Word
   And the guidance He’d surely bestow:
“Dear Father, I pray, give me wisdom to say
   Which direction You’d have me to go.”

The knowledge I sought was a comforting thought,
   For He’d tell me just where each way led
So that I could decide on which course I should stride
   By judging the path up ahead.

But the harder I peered the more dim it appeared
   No matter which route I addressed,
So with uncertain sigh I’d no choice but to try
   The one that I hoped would be best.

My confidence soared, singing praise to the Lord,
   When through flowery meadows I passed,
And I started to dream of the mountainous stream
   Where I knew I’d be drinking at last.

By this fancy possessed I then thought myself blessed
   As the way wound o’er beautiful bluff,
But, my fears soon realized, I felt sorely chastised
   When the track turned impassably rough.

My thoughts smoldered black as I had to turn back,
   And I wondered where God was that day,
For as I retraced, it seemed such a waste,
   And I felt He had led me astray.

Confused and deceived, all the grace I’d received
   Was hard to esteem at the time,
But the lessons I learned as my face with shame burned
   Were a gift from God’s storehouse sublime.

Now oft are the days when I think of the ways
   That the Lord leads His own by the hand,
And as the years pass I’m beginning to grasp
   How each detour is part of His plan.

Though we long for sight to see through the night
   And pick the best path on display,
We never would choose the course God would use
   If He showed us the trials on the way.

God grants us indeed all the wisdom we need
   When we ask with a heart that is true,
But it isn’t the way that I’d hoped for that day,
   When I thought He would open my view.

We don’t need to know where each pathway will go;
   The future is not ours to see.
We just need to trust in the God who is just
   And delight in wherever He leads.

Ed Morris, 2008



This page copyright © 2008 Edward A. Morris.  Created September 1, 2008.  Last updated September 4, 2008.

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