Enthusiastically, Dawn

Welcome Friends…

This is Day six of the journey we began Sunday, September 22. I am typing away Friday night after a busy and blessed week, full of drama, and deliverance, tears, and God’s joyful presence. How good that He is with us in the middle of the messes we find ourselves! How precious that somehow He walks us- His children- through every obstacle course, whether one we have somehow caused, or one we are in because of another’s decision. Either way He does not flee from us…no, He stays. He meets us in the midst of it and reminds us we are a purchased and precious possession. Loved. Cherished. His. We are the ones He is not willing should be lost, the ones He will not abandon. If you know Him, this one called by the name Jesus, this One, this God come for us, yes, the God who comes for us, who came, who lived and died and who rose again. Who comes for us now…the minute we ask…the minute we say- yes, Lord- not my will, not my understanding, not my worthiness. But, yours, YOU, all YOU, Jesus. Show me your Way, your Will, your Truth. He holds out His healed, holy, whole hands, and walks us on a new path, one He promises to walk with us forever. One He alone does not withhold. Is there anything like the beauty, sacrifice, and freedom in this name, Jesus? I dare say, no.

I think the Lord, has chosen to use this prompt for His purposes. I did not plan to write about what I am about to, but He is forging a new path with me right now! May His will be done…

So if you are ready to go where you may or not have gone before, let’s take a walk. Let’s walk together, yes? (I think Jesus just hijacked this post!)

Prompt 6: Forge a New Path

OK, spirituality aside for the moment (is that even possible?) let’s consider the path you are on and how you got here. Take a moment and just think about the NOW you are existing in. Not necessarily politically, or in some weird overly introspective way. Just a mini-contemplation assessing your present reality- personally.

Let’s write about the place you are…

Are you beside the still waters, safe from harm, enjoying green pastures? Are you in the midst of a storm on a sea where all feels tempestuous? Are you able to sit from the place you are and look back with a sense of wonder with the turns of events and circumstances that brought you to THIS place, this HERE and NOW?

What lies ahead? What is in YOUR hands to control? What is out of your hands? What will you do with the time you have now, without looking back, but instead forging a new path? For yourself, for your family, for your loved ones? For your community? For your world?

What say you? Are you ready to forge a new path today? WIth your writing? Your thinking? Your perceptions?

Well, if you are reading this on Saturday morning (or whenever you are reading it) and you can, I challenge you to take this prompt literally! Get outside, take a walk, carry a notebook, and take time to ask the questions, think the thoughts and when you are ready, find a bench, or a patch of grass and sit and write.

Here’s some starters (if needed):

I am forging a new path for myself…

My hope is to forge a new path for…

Here are some quotes that could be fun to take on:

“A trail through the mountains, if used, becomes a path in a short time, but, if unused, becomes blocked by grass in an equally short time.”~Mencius

“End? No, the journey doesn’t end here. Death is just another path. One that we all must take.” ~J.R.R. Tolkien

“Let everyone regulate his conduct… by the golden rule of doing to others as in similar circumstances we would have them do to us, and the path of duty will be clear before him.” ~William Wilberforce

“Go forth on your path, as it exists only through your walking.”~Saint Augustine

“America is the land of the second chance – and when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a better life.”~George W. Bush

Writer’s Tip- How much better to carry a journal and hash out our thoughts in a notebook instead of on social media! How much clearer our thinking, our undistracted thoughts written before our eyes, and before the One who actually knows the story from every side. Think about it. Write about it!

OR

Write about a hike you took as a child or as an adult. Ponder the difference in your experience as you remember them through the your perceptions at the different times.

OR

Revisit the ultimate path poem, Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken. Journal a response to the poem itself, or any stanza that stands out to you. Here it is for your listening AND reading pleasure: The Road Not Taken (The Poetry Foundation)

REMEMBER: Let the prompt lead, and surprise you with where it takes you!

Happy Journaling!

Enthusiastically, Dawn