When At the End

Sunday I watched as a man "resigned" from his place as a spiritual leader of the community that he had been a part of for a number of years. There was no moral breakdown, there was no pressure for him to step down, there was nothing untoward in anything in this other than he and his wife are moving to Houston due to job change. For them it was an end of an era in their lives; unexpected, unwanted, but necessary. As he emotionally read his message to the community, my thoughts ran to some of the events in my life that reflected change that was happening beyond my control and beyond my understanding. Sometimes life is like that.

My thoughts ran towards the events that have occurred in my life that ended relationships, ended ministry, ended jobs and short-circuited career, ended innocence and certainly ended naivete. They say that the first casualty of war is innocence, I believe that to be true of adulthood as well.

But along the way I found some words that have helped me move past the loss of motivation, the loss of innocence. They are words by a lady named Helen Steiner Rice. I want to share them with you.

A Bend in the Road
By Helen Steiner Rice

When we feel we have nothing left to give
And we are sure that the “song has ended”–
When our day seems over and the shadows fall
And the darkness of night has descended.
Where can we go to find the strength
To valiantly keep on trying,
Where can we find the hand that will dry
The tears that the heart is crying–
There’s but one place to go and that is to God
And, dropping all pretense and pride,
We can pour out our problems without restraint
And gain strength with Him at our side–
And together we stand at life’s crossroads
And view what we think is the end,
But God has a much bigger vision
And He tells us it’s only a bend–
For the road goes on and is smoother,
And the “pause in the song” is a “rest”,
And the part that’s unsung and unfinished
Is the sweetest and richest and best–
So rest and relax and grow stronger,
Let go and let God share your load,
Your work is not finished or ended,
You’ve just come to “a bend in the road”.~

Every line in the poem speaks to me. I find myself at a great many crossroads these days and wonder what the rest of the journey looks like. Is it short or long? Will it be as fulfilling as the start of the journey? Will I see a dead end or a bend?
My mental image is one of God lightly resting his hand on my shoulder and whispering to me that the journey still has to be traveled..but never alone. Never, ever alone.

Godspeed, my prayer is that your journey is "smoother" and the "pause in the song" is not too long.
Don