Lost and… not

We went to visit our son, Sam, and his husband, Jarrett, at the end of July and beginning of August. It was a great trip to North Carolina and it was great to be in the mountains and all the GREEN. Boone isn’t far away from where Sam and Jarrett live and that’s where Sam has a job in a large church, handling their tech work. There are a number of “nods” to the heritage and history of Daniel Boone, along with the name of the town. You may know that there are a number of places named after Daniel Boone, famous frontiersman from the early days of our country. Some people named their places after him even though he was never there. He may have been rumored to have camped nearby, and that was good enough for a lot of people to claim his presence.

The story goes that someone asked Daniel if he had ever been lost. “No,” Boone said, “I’ve never been lost, but I’ve been perplexed for days on end.” This quote is something like Daniel’s campsites. I’ve found it as “turned around for a few days,” “mighty perplexed for several weeks,” and “once bewildered for 3 days.” It was around here… somewhere.

I like this quote (even in its variations) because it carries such an aroma of assurance. It’s kind of like, “I know where I am right now and I know where I’m headed… just not completely sure how I’ll get there just yet.” I think that’s a good position for a Christian mindset, sometimes. I’m comfortable in myself while I get clear on which way to go next. There’s no worry in this. I’m just taking my time to see and to hear what I need in order to move ahead.

We bless ourselves with “the constant companionship of the Holy Spirit” many times at the end of worship. This reminds me that I have someone who makes sure I’m never lost… even if I wonder about the direction in which to move next sometimes.

Blessings,Geoff