How to Get Royally Lost

Keep On Climbing

8" x 8"

Watercolor of my son Joe

Have you ever "found" yourself lost?  Then you can relate to my story.  Last night after nearing the end of a 10 hour drive from Butte, Montana to Scottsbluff, Nebraska I lost the trail....the Oregon Trail.  Which is right where I should have been...smack-dab in the middle of where all those ancient pioneer Conestoga wagons passed through.  I had successfully navigated busy cities like Seattle and Spokane on this trip, but somehow couldn't find my son Joe's and daughter-in-law Crystal's home.  It wasn't like I haven't been here before, either.  They live in the small town of Gering which is on the south part of the city of Scottsbluff.  I entered the outskirts of Scottsbluff coming in from the direction of Torrington, Wyoming at 8 p.m.  I thought to myself..."This is good.  You have made it in good time."  NOT!!  An hour later I drove up in front of their home.  What was the problem?  As I lay in bed last night trying to get the "driving-all-day-on-the-road-buzz" out of my head, I reflected on what went wrong.  And it applies metaphorically to all aspects of life.  Here goes:

1.  Be tired.

 When you are not at your best, the percentages for bad decisions go up.  Being rested enables you to be more on top of your game.  You bring a better perspective to the picture and can see more clearly the options and the choices you need to make.

2.  Do it in the dark.

Not a good idea!  All the other times that I have approached the beautiful Scottsbluff valley and the magnificent bluffs, it was daylight.  The very familiar and striking landmarks of Dome Rock and Scotts Bluff can be seen from miles away.  But....make it all go away in the darkness and sight direction is not an option.  Nothing looked familiar to me last night.  The more I tried to figure out where I was, the worse it got.  Gering is only 7 miles away from Scottsbluff.  The more I drove, the more I was heading down the highway towards Ogallala, NE.  So I turned back and eventually reached my kids' home.  In life we get our sense of direction from the landmarks of values and wisdom.  I have found God's Word to be my main landmark for guidance and direction in life.  It is so important to not be drifting through life in the dark, trying to figure out where you need to be going.  

3.  Make assumptions.

When I travel, I check on Google Maps for what routes to best take and what exits I need to be looking for.  Doing this all ahead of time helps to prevent missed turns and lost time.  I did this for all the big cities like Seattle.  So I assumed I could handle the Scottsbluff/Gering scene.  NOPE!  I didn't have my routes in my head....just assumed I could figure it out and not allowing for attempting to do that in the dark.  Like the Boy Scout motto says...."Always be prepared!"  I could have saved myself an hour of drive time at the end of a   l   o   n   g 

day's drive if I had not assumed I knew what I really didn't know.  The same goes for life...are you making choices based on what you assume to be true?  Or are you really delving into those choices and considering evidence for the best choice?  One choice that will matter for all eternity is what place Jesus Christ will have in your life.  I'd consider that one very carefully.  

I am one day away from being back home at my studio in Omaha, Nebraska.  It has been an amazing trip full of adventures, both good and difficult.  I can't wait to get to work on portraying some of the beauty I have seen.  Here's a few beautiful scenes:

Be brave and courageous!