A Walk Through the Woods

A boy and his father were on a journey through the forest.  They had a long way to walk to get home.  There were parts of the woods that could be dangerous if one wandered too far off the path.  For that reason the father asked the boy to hold his hand and stay close.

The boy complied for a short while.  But then a bright butterfly crossed their path.  Intrigued by the vibrant creature the boy let his hand slip from his father’s gentle grip and gave chase.  The butterfly veered off the path and into the cool darkness of the woods.  The boy followed after, too captivated by the insect to hear the voice of his father calling him back.

The creature led the boy deeper and deeper into the woods and then suddenly disappeared.  The boy stopped in his tracks mystified.  With the enchantment of the butterfly gone, the sinister darkness of the deep forest closed in around him.  Frightened, he tried to make his way back to the safety of the path.

But he couldn’t remember how to get back.  He wandered and stumbled through thorn bushes until he heard the voice of his father calling to him.  The sound of the voice guided him back to the path, where he finally emerged, tired and tattered, but greatly relieved.  His father welcomed him with a hug and warned him not to wander off again.

But a short while later the boy saw a rabbit on the side of the path.  He let go of his father’s hand and walked toward the rabbit.  As he drew close, the rabbit turned and scampered off into the woods.  The boy gave chase again and again soon found himself deep within the woods.  Having lost the rabbit, the boy once again felt the dread of the forest close around him.  He raced back toward the path, but couldn’t find his way.  Instead he traveled deeper and deeper into the woods.  Frightened and exhausted, he sat down on a fallen log and called out to his father.  A few minutes later a man approached him.  The boy recognized the man as one of his father’s servants who lived near the woods.  The servant took hold of the boy’s hand and led him back to his father.  Once more the father welcomed him with a hug and warned him not to wander off again.

A little bit later the boy heard some music coming from the woods.  It reminded him of the sounds of a carnival.  Again he left the path and wandered into the woods to find the source of the music.  The sound drew him deeper into the forest, far deeper than he had been in his previous trips.  He was sure that the music was leading him to a place where there would be treats and fun games to play.

But suddenly the music stopped.  The boy found himself in a dark and cold place.  The twisted tree limbs above him choked out the sunlight.  He knew he was hopelessly lost.  All he could think to do was sit down and cry.

A short time later his father’s servant appeared again and offered to lead him back to the path.  The boy was just about to follow when another man appeared.  He was dressed in fine clothes and had a pleasant smile.  He offered to lead the boy all the way home by a much shorter route than the path his father had been taking.  He said that his way would take them past a carnival where the boy could stop and play.  As if on cue, the music started up again.  The boy’s eyes lit up.  He took the hand of the stranger and walked off with him even deeper into the woods.  The servant called after the boy, warning him that the stranger was evil and was leading him into danger.  But the boy ignored the servant’s cries and focused all his attention on the carnival music and all the fun it held in store.

The boy walked with the stranger for quite some time.  The music always seemed close, but just out of reach.  The forest grew even darker and the path narrowed.  Thorns and brambles began to choke the trail, tearing at the boy’s clothes and cutting his skin.  But still he pressed on, trusting in the promises of his guide.

Suddenly the ground beneath his feet softened.  He tried to take a step but could not. Then he started to sink – first up to his shins and then all the way up to his knees.  He struggled to escape from the quicksand but that only caused him to sink deeper.  He cried out to his guide for help, but his guide was no longer there.

Sinister lights began to flicker in the darkness around him.  He soon realized they were the eyes of wolves closing in around him.  He could hear their low growls.  He was utterly trapped.  Knowing it was probably hopeless, but unable to think of anything else to do, the boy screamed for his father.

Moments later a figure came crashing through the thorns.  It was the boy’s older brother.  His clothes were in tatters and he was cut all over from having charged through the thorns.  He reached out his hand to pull the boy out of the quicksand.  The boy grabbed his brother’s hand and was yanked from the mire in one strong motion.
But the ground suddenly gave way beneath his brother’s feet and he was quickly waste deep in the sand.  Worse still, the wolves sprung out from the shadows.  The brother told the boy to run and the boy obeyed.  The wolves did not pursue.  Instead they focused their attention on the boy’s helpless brother.  The boy cried as he heard them carry out their savage work in the distance behind him.

After running for some time, the boy finally stopped.  He no longer heard the wolves, but he still felt as though he was no closer to the path.  Suddenly a figured appeared before him.  It was his brother.  The young man was dressed in white and his body bore no sign of damage from thorns or wolves.  The boy could hardly believe his eyes.  He asked his brother how it was possible.

His brother told him that their father had given him power over death.  He had come back to lead the boy back to the path that would lead them home.  The boy took his brother’s hand and the two of them walked back to the path.  Once they reached the path the two of them walked home together.  When they reached their house their father ran out to greet them and embraced them both.  He made no mention of the boy’s disobedience that had led him off the path.  He welcomed them both into the house where a feast was waiting for them.
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The previous story illustrates our relationship with God.  We are the boy.  We are meant to walk in fellowship with God (the father) until we reach our eternal home.  But inevitably there are things that draw us away from the path.  We each have our own temptations that lure us into the dark tangled woods of sin.  And once there we find it hard to find our way back.  Sometimes we turn back in time to return to the path with just a call from God our father, the voice of our conscience, if you will.  Other times it takes the intervention of a servant of God, like a minister or prophet to lead us back to the path.  But ultimately it takes the sacrifice of the Son of God to save us from the depths of sin that would otherwise destroy us.  And it is only by following him that we can find our way home.

There are few things more tragic than seeing a loved one turn away from their previously held faith in God.  People turn away for a number of reasons - anger over loss or failure, the seduction of other world views, or lifestyle choices they cannot reconcile with religious doctrine.  There are some people who feel they are too far gone for God to ever accept them again.

The truth is that no one is too far gone for God to forgive them. No one.  He did not send his son to suffer and die on a cross to save jaywalkers and people who tell an occasional white lie.  The great and terrible price that Jesus paid was intended to pay the greatest debts of those who have done the most terrible deeds.

The fact is that we all fall short.  We all jump into pits of sin of varying depths.  None of us can get out on our own.  We all need to reach to Jesus to be pulled out.  The acting of reaching is all the he asks of us - nothing more.  And no matter how hopelessly deep the pit you are in is, the simple act of reaching for Jesus will save you just as surely as it will the person who has stumbled into a shallow ditch.

In this blog series I will share excerpts from my book "You are Never too far Gone for God".  It is a short book and deliberately so.  I did not want to create anything that would be viewed as too long and daunting to read.  I wanted the message to be short and to the point to make it as easy as possible for people to read and share with others.  My intention is to share the entirety of the book in this blog series so that those who take the time to read can get the full message without it costing them anything.

So if you are someone who feels like you are too far gone for God to accept you back, or if you have someone in your life that feels that way,  I would ask you to keep checking back in to receive this message of encouragement over the coming weeks.