Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth. – Psalm 86:11a ESV

Recently, we experienced a major storm, one filled with lightning and thunder, and significant rainfall. The storm started while my wife and I were at a church meeting and continued for several hours. As we opened the doors to leave, we knew we would get very wet on our short walk home.

My wife was aware of some obstacles she noticed on the way to the meeting and reminded me to be careful. The problem… in addition to the heavy rain it was extremely dark. As we made the brisk walk to our porch, we both thought we knew the safest way home, but it was not the same way. This made for some humorous moments as we walked hand-in-hand trying to take each other in different directions. Soaking wet, and laughing, we made it back realizing neither of us knew for sure what we were doing.

While that night will remain a happy memory, it is true that not every path is so safe, nor is every journey lighthearted. There are places we must go and choices we must make that are far more significant where, if we are honest, we still feel like we are walking in darkness. We think we know where we are going, but it may be more accurate to say we hope we know.

In John 14, Jesus tells his disciples, “You know the way to the place where I am going.” The disciples, in a moment of honesty reply, “How can we know the way?” Jesus, recognizing their human confusion offers the greatest solace, “I am the way.”

The psalmist understood the disciples dilemma. Walking the right path, the way of God’s truth is not always easy, but we are not alone in our journey. There is help from the One who knows, and is, the way. When we remain in Christ, and allow him to teach us his way, our path is secure. There is no darkness too deep, nor storm too strong, to cause us to lose our way. The journey may not be easy, but following Jesus, we will not be lost.

We can try to find our own way, and we can let others pull us in different directions they believe are correct, but we may end up more lost than we were when we began, getting soaked by the powerful rains of the storm. We may end up running into unexpected obstacles, injuring ourselves or others. Yet, when we humble ourselves enough to admit that we do not know the way, we are then in a position to seek God’s direction; to pray, “Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth.”

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No, I did not make the goal, but on top of the learning that took place, I had a great time. I also enjoyed some wonderful ministry time with our church, developing some new outreach initiatives and a new Saturday evening worship service that will launch in January. I enjoyed getting ready for Thanksgiving and did some early preparation for Christmas. There was time to work with our seminary interns, care for people in need and help a family, and the church, through the loss of a dear saint. There was also time to be with my wife and kids, get our two youngest children ready to begin college, work through financial aid, and spend a lot of time holding our new grandson.

Many would assess my success by how well I achieved my goal. I am judging my success on what I learned and how I lived. It is all too easy to be caught up in accomplishments, but there is so much more than that to successful living. The process is much more valuable than meeting a goal. God created us to love and to live. We are part of the great divine plan to transform the world for good, not just by crossing finish lines and checking off “To Do’s,” but also by being a transforming presence along the way. Life is not just about getting there. It has a great deal more to do with the journey we took along the way.

Don’t get me wrong, there is great value in goal setting, list making, and project completing. The danger is when we use only these tools to evaluate our success. A runner who finishes last, but breaks a personal best is hardly a failure. The student who scores a 70% on an exam, when that score is up from a 50% on the previous exam can certainly call that a success, even if the test makers do not. Success and failure are not so easily measured by such external tools. Sometimes, the greatest successes are hidden in the midst of amazing failures.

This season brings with it an enormous pressure to succeed in everything. We worry about our parties, our gifts and our commitments. We fear the judgement of others about our choices and abilities. We rush thought a myriad of activities to “make it a good Christmas,” and miss the real meaning of the season in the process.

What really happens if someone gives you a better gift than you gave them? Is your relationship so fragile (and maybe shallow) that it would be damaged by the value or size of a gift? Does the world end if your cookies don’t bake right, if the decorations fail to fully light, or if you miss a couple of holiday parties? Sure, all these things are important, but typically, not to the degree we think they are.

Several years ago, we came into December with our finances tighter than we wanted them to be. We could not see how we were going to be able to have the Christmas we were used to with our family. We prayed and talked, and we made a decision to make some difficult cuts. We talked with our children and explained that we needed to cut back, that we would not be able to travel and that we would have to postpone much of our gift giving until February or March. We shared how we believed that we should spend what we could on the holiday traditions that built our family: special foods on the Christmas buffet, time to be together, and fires in the fireplace.

The result was one of the best Christmases ever, even our children thought so. There were many homemade gifts on Christmas Day, great food, and great time together. Nothing was lost, but much was gained. The season was not a success by the standards of those who believe it is about what we get and what we can spend, but for our family, it was anything but a failure.

As you celebrate this season, and the many seasons of your life, be careful to look in the right places to determine your success. Often, what the world around us calls failure, God calls excellent, and it the latter opinion that really matters. Keep your eyes on what really matters, slow down, give yourself some grace and really live the life that you’ve been given.

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