What Trail Are You On?

Throughout history there have been many famous trails.

The Appalachian Trail

The Oregon Trail

The Lewis and Clark Trail

The C&O Canal Towpath

Are just a few of the renowned trails of early America. They were the country’s first highway system.

But no matter which trail you want to hike, there are some fundamental principles needed. First of all, these trails were blazed by many who hiked than before you. For instance, the Oregon Trail Was formed by countless people who were on their way to, well, Oregon. It would be foolish for someone to blaze their own trail as the early settlers headed West, when the Oregon Trail was well established.

What Trail Are You On?

Secondly, every trail has a destination. Although there are few who choose to just meander aimlessly, most people began hiking on a trail to reach another place. Maybe it's a high precipice overlooking the valley. Maybe it's a multi month hike from one end of the Appalachian Trail to the next. Whatever reason you start walking on the trail, the purpose of it is to get you somewhere.

What Trail Are You On?

Third, taking a hike requires a bit of planning and preparation. There are provisions you will need along the way. The longer the hike the more preparation. Things like water, food, clothes, shelter, and other provisions have to be considered.

All of these remind us of the trail that we all are walking as believers in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 26:7 ESV

7 The path of the righteous is level; you make level the way of the righteous.

What Trail Are You On?

Trail life is more than just about outdoors, hiking, adventure, and learning survival skills. Trail life is about walking worthy as men of God. And let me just say, our world needs men of God more than ever.

Colossians 1:10 ESV

10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

What Trail Are You On?

And so just as it is important for hikers to stay on the trails blazed by those before them, so it is for us as believers to make sure that we stay on the proven trails that had been marked so carefully for us. We must stay on the trail of:

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

The Scriptures

Sound Doctrine

The Blessed Hope

Repentance and humility

Prayer and Fasting

The Great Commission

Church Attendence

Worship and Fellowship

What Trail Are You On?

Likewise there are pitfalls when we get off these trails:

Pride

Heresy

worldly influence

Isolation & depression

Backsliding

Confusion

Addictions

Immorality

Judgement

What Trail Are You On?

So the question is which trail are you on? Right now, here today, you are following a trail that will either honor God and your family, lead you to salvation, and strengthen your spiritual walk. Or you are on a trail that will bring destruction, pain, and judgement. When you walk on the trail blazed by God and the fathers of our faith, you are walking on a trail that brings blessings to your life and those around you. Listen to some of these passages that remind us of just that:

Isaiah 40:28–31 ESV

28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. 29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Proverbs 15:19 ESV

19 The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway.

Hebrews 12:1–3 ESV

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Joshua 14:9 ESV

9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’

Psalm 56:13 ESV

13 For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

Psalm 119:105 ESV

105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Isaiah 52:7 ESV

7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”

Psalm 37:23 ESV

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way;

What Trail Are You On?

Which trail are you on? Right now, every one of us is about to take a next step in life. Make sure it’s the step on the trail, marked by God.

Picture with me a lone hiker on a winding mountain trail. He has hiked the better part of the day over rough terrain making switchback after switchback as he climbs the steep grade. Finally he comes to a wide place in the trail and a large flat rock and there he lifts off the heavy pack from his weary shoulders and sits down on the rock soaking up the late afternoon sun. From there he looks out over the vista and takes note of the winding trail that he has just traveled on. Though the trail is long, the mountain air is crystal clear and the hiker can see a great distance off.

That’s a picture of King David as he looks back over his life in Psalm 71.

Psalm 71:5-9 ; 18-20

Psalm 71:5–9 ESV

5 For you, O Lord, are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth. 6 Upon you I have leaned from before my birth; you are he who took me from my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of you. 7 I have been as a portent to many, but you are my strong refuge. 8 My mouth is filled with your praise, and with your glory all the day. 9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent.

Psalm 71:18–20 ESV

18 So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come. 19 Your righteousness, O God, reaches the high heavens. You who have done great things, O God, who is like you? 20 You who have made me see many troubles and calamities will revive me again; from the depths of the earth you will bring me up again.

What Trail is Behind You?

David looks back over the trail and he sees all of the marks of the goodness of God. From the time that he was a shepherd he has seen God intervene for him time and time again. There was the lion and there was the bear and there was Goliath and there was all of the times that God had sustained him along the trail and the old king’s heart swells with pride. God certainly has been good.

What Trail is Behind You?

As I sit upon this rock, and look back over the trail that I have walked, I too can see the goodness of God. God has been really good to me. Sure, there were difficult times and I know there are difficult times to come. These are the steepest points of life that strain us and leave a burning in her legs as we struggle to take the next step up. Even in the struggles of the climb God has been there and God has been good.

What Trail is Behind You?

David went from being a shepherd boy, to the travails of Saul, and now he is a king. He is no longer a shepherd boy anymore. Which reminds us of an important truth: “you will not be the same person tomorrow that you are today.” No one stays in one spot on the trail. You are growing in the Lord. Paul reminds the Ephesian Church this several times:

Ephesians 2:20 ESV

20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,

Ephesians 4:1 ESV

1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,

Ephesians 5:8 ESV

8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

Ephesians 5:15 ESV

15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,

Where is This Trail Taking You?

David also looks into the future of his life in Psalm 71. Says just as the Lord has brought me through the trials behind me he will bring me through the trials before me. With God we can look confidently into the future and hold fast to the journey ahead that he has set before us. God has prepared you and given you everything you need to walk that journey. The question is will you follow the trail that has been marked clearly by the word of God and be guided by His Spirit over that trail?

Psalm 1:1 ESV

1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

Psalm 27:11 ESV

11 Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.

Psalm 119:105 ESV

105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

Three Trails

There are actually three different trails that the Bible talks about and knowing the difference between them is the most important thing in life. The Narrow Way, The Broad Way, and The Shortcut

Jesus taught about two of these trails in the Sermon on the Mount.

Matthew 7:13–14 ESV

13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

The Broad Trail

Most people look for the easiest trail; The broad way. The highway to hell is a 10 lane highway that leads to destruction. All you have to do is set your cruise control and let the miles fly by you. But sooner or later you will crash and burn.

The Narrow Trail

The narrow road is the road Jesus tells us to use. It's not a highway or a turnpike. In fact it may be difficult at times or monotonous at other times. There will be struggling, wrestling, and discouragement that will leave you questioning if it is really worth it at all.

The reality is if you're not on that right trail you will get to the end of your days and look back behind you on the highway that you took and realized that you wasted your entire life. If you are on the right trail, be careful to stay there. If you are on the wrong trail, there is still time to change directions. Which trail are you on?

Psalm 90:12 ESV

12 So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

The Shortcut

The third option is a shortcut. It’s sort of a phantom trail that always promises more than it can deliver. There’s always one thing that you can be sure of with a shortcut and that is that sooner or later it merges with the trail to destruction.

Proverbs 14:12 ESV

12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

The Shortcut

Shortcuts always offer the hope of an easier trail but they often wind up destroying those who take the easy way out. Just ask the men of the Donner Party.

In April of 1846, Jacob and George Donner, along with James Reed, organized a group of farmers and their families to seek a better life out West. Their journey became a nightmare of such proportions that the Donner Party has become nothing short of legendary.

The Shortcut

The party decided to take a shortcut, they found on a flyer by man name Hastings. That choice led to delay after disastrous delay and the lives of many. They had to cut their own trail through the timber of the mountains in Utah, and then they encountered an eighty-mile stretch of salt desert.

When they finally reached the Sierra Nevadas, snow welcomed them in the mountain passes. They soon realized they had been caught in this high mountain pass dangerously short of provisions and trapped on the mountain for the winter.

The Shortcut

Some members of the party, realizing the utter hopelessness of their situation, went mad. Others resorted to cannibalism. Several murders took place. In the end, less than half of the original party lived to see the next spring.

Shortcuts are slippery trails that force you to compromise. They always look better in the beginning but lead to more problems. The shortcut of life is sin. Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. There are no shortcuts to heaven.

What Trail Are You On?

Satan always convinces people there’s better way - a shortcut with God. He did it to Adam and Eve. He did it to David. He did it to Judas. He did it to one-third of the angels. He’s done it to countless others. Don’t let him do it to you.

The shortcut that always takes more than you bargained

The broad trail that leads to destruction

The narrow trail that leads to life

Which trail are you on?