We have already thought a lot about those moments when we make choices. Those tipping points after which things are never the same. That moment of revelation is intoxicating. We feel like the hard part is behind us. We see our spiritual path laid out before us and we are ready to walk it. That excitement can manifest in many ways. But however it shows up in your life you suddenly find yourself finally making progress.
But then something happens. A new problem arises or the choice we made doesn’t look in practice how we thought it would when started. So many spiritual journeys break down at this point. The excitement fades and so does the progress. What do we do when this happens?
Moments when we cannot make forward progress on walking our spiritual path are common. We at the Wayfarer’s Hearth recognize the need for rest to prevent these moments of struggle from turning into moments of failure. Losing hope, momentum, or inspiration doesn’t need to turn into moments that end our path.
I am not giving this advice from a position of authority. I too must practice this skill set when I come up against challenges or just have a day where I question my path. It is ok to change our minds on things when were get more information, when we increase in wisdom, or when we realize the cost of something is more than we are willing to pay.
We talk a lot about finding your path and walking it. We talk about finding time to rest on that path. Moments we take to regain our strength or expand our knowledge before we move on. But there is a third way to think about path. Sometimes, we just have to wait.
It can be maddening. We know where we want to go, we are ready to take the journey on the path. While we are walking we come to a point where the path ends. Not because we have reached our goal. But because the path is not there yet. We must wait for the path to be ready for us before we can move on.
Let’s say a farmer is ready to plant. He has done all the work leading up to it, he spends days tending his fields, seeding and fertilizing it. When he is done he looks on it with satisfaction. Now comes the hard part. He must wait. He cannot force his crop to grow before it is ready. He cannot harvest it because it has not grown. He must wait.
So too there are times when we have decided on a course of action, a belief system, or a new chapter in our lives. We do the work to prepare, we do the work to begin, we are traveling down the next part of our path. But then we find ourselves in limbo. Staring at the possibility of waiting until the harvest is ready, or in the lingo we use, until the path is ready.
Do not despair when these moments of waiting appear on your path. Take the time to rest, take the time to prepare, get comfortable with the waiting. It takes patience, but if we master the act of waiting for our moment to progress it only makes the success of our walk that much more satisfying.
Meditate on the discipline of waiting. Think about where you need to wait in your spiritual life. When the time is right you will continue your path, and you will do so successfully because you have taken time to rest and prepare. When the time is right the path will appear and you will be ready to continue walking it well.
Whether you are walking, resting, or waiting you are always welcome here. Regardless I hope I see you on the path. Until we meet again friends. So mote it be.
0 comments