We had some high winds and heavy rains a few days ago. It brought down a lot of limbs and leaves and even a few trees. One of my favorite running paths – the new green-way in south Cornelius, had lots of debris and a large tree covering the path.
As I was running I had to leap over the tree. It wasn’t very high so that wasn’t a problem. It was even a little fun. I thought about the hurdles in life that we sometime have to jump in order to get anywhere. I thought about the hurdle of the $50,000 that I am trying to raise to support the work of Lily Pad Haven and help end human trafficking. I thought about the hurdle of running 50 miles in one day on September 29th. I thought about the hurdle that countless families face to find their missing children, or to escape modern-day slavery, or to pay off some insurmountable debt that hangs around their necks like a large stone too big to move.
Yesterday I ran on the same path and discovered that someone had come along and cut and removed the section of tree that had blocked the path. Farther down the path I saw a man on a tractor with a high-powered blower who was blowing all the debris off the trail. There were people clearing the path so that others could make it safely and more easily to their desired destination. I thought about how any of us can contribute to the ease of someone else’s journey. I was grateful for those workers that day.
How can we help? Maybe it is an encouraging word…maybe it is the removing of an actual obstacle…maybe it is clearing stuff out of the way in a person’s schedule by taking on one of their items on their “to do list” so they are freed up to do something else. What if our lives were all about clearing paths for others in order to make their journey a little more manageable. I think that is what the scriptures mean when they say to “think of the needs of others before thinking of your own.” And we can all do that a little bit more than we already are. It isn’t difficult. It just takes some intentionality and some love.
In regard to human trafficking, maybe we support the work of Lily Pad or some other worthy ministry. Maybe we share the story of a survivor and help teach others about the dangers of modern-day slavery. Maybe we seek to be more careful in our purchases so that we are not supporting slave labor. Maybe we educate ourselves about how to notice trafficking so we can do something about it when we see it. Let’s help clear the path for those who are caught up in this terrible industry.
So – here’s to those who are out their clearing the path for others. May we join their efforts today and make life a little better for someone else.
Soli Deo Gloria.