Rethinking the Journey

I am on a journey. I have been through depths of life so dark and deep that I thought I would never see the light of day again. I have stood on mountain peaks so high and clear that I felt like I could reach out and touch the face of God. I have faced monsters so fearsome and evil as to be met only in a nightmare. I have crossed oceans and risked fierce storms to pursue my true love. Of course, the journey of which I speak is not a literal, physical trek. Yes, I have been fortunate enough to travel to some exotic destinations, but the odyssey to which I refer, the one to which we are all called, is a journey of the heart and soul.

Some choose the safety of the sheltered harbors of life and never seek the adventure that beckons. They balk in the face of such risk. It is an odyssey of great magnitude and importance, but I fear that many of us do not grasp its significance. This call to voyage begins the instant we are brought into this world and does not end until the moment we take our last breath. If we seek out the journey set before us, we will find the life and freedom for which we earnestly wish. If we do not, we will find only the safety, comfort, and boredom of an unlived life.

Young people must first set sail on the seas of life and face the foes that lie in wait for them. They must wrestle with forces that would strive to define and form them. That is the only way to become what they were born to be. They are shaped by the trials that come their way. By making a stand for what is good and right in the midst of great evil, they become noble, they become greater, and they become the heroes and heroines of this life.