The Back Way

Sometimes, when I’m driving from one place to another, I’ll deliberately take “the back way”. Generally, the back way may not be the most direct way to get where I want to go, and it will take more time to get there. Further, the roads won’t always be the nicest; they will be curvier, hillier, meander a bit, have more stops, and sometimes there might be assorted slow moving farm equipment, etc. However, there will almost always be less traffic and more interesting things to see.

Recently, I once again took the back way to drive to a destination I go to often. As I was driving the thought struck me that the back way isn’t the preferred way to go when it comes to my other, my most important journey. I realized that at times that is exactly what I do—take the back way. And I see others, sometimes close friends, doing it as well. The journey I’m speaking of is my spiritual journey.

You see, I’ve found that when my focus is on my spiritual journey, for my own good I must stick to the main roads—spiritual paths, if you will. I need the certainty of that which is familiar. I need the directness. I need more traffic—community in this case. I don’t need distractions. I don’t need to relax. I don’t need the temptation to lollygag. I do need a regular routine. I need constancy and consistency.

When I take the back way, I begin to feel unknown, unexposed, adventurous, and therefore unaccountable. Old habits and thought patterns can easily come to the forefront. It’s easier for me to hide, not be seen. And, even though I may feel secure, it is that loneness that tempts actions that I don’t desire in myself.  What “they” don’t see, “they” won’t know. But God does—and it is with that knowledge that I don’t take the back way.