Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Camping (07/11/05)
-
TITLE: Camping Kid Style | Previous Challenge Entry
By Clay Drysdale
07/15/05 -
LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
SEND A PRIVATE COMMENT
ADD TO MY FAVORITES
You see, I would place my tent sometimes no more that 15 or 20 feet from the back door of my house; I had plenty of extension cord to run to the tent. My three dogs and I would lie in the tent, "roughing it", watching TV late into the night. Then I would fall asleep peacefully, knowing that I was only a few feet from the safety of my house.
Was that really camping? Most would probably say that it was not. I enjoyed it, however. I got to get out of the house and do something different without having to venture too far from what was comfortable to me. For a child that age, it was not too bad I suppose.
Of course, now that I'm an adult, camping has a different meaning. Usually it means that I'm outdoors, nowhere near my home. In fact, the last time my tent was set up, my son and I were 150 miles or so from our house and the safety of a roof over our heads.
I can't help but compare my childhood camping adventures to the Christian walk. Many of us Christians never step outside our comfort zone, never venturing more than just a few steps from where we began when we first received Christ. I know that I fall into that category in many ways.
Fear of talking to others about Jesus, or fear of giving of our time or our money, are examples of ways in which we choose to live safely, without venturing outward for a real Christian experience. The writer of Hebrews warned against not growing in our spiritual lives. "In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness" (Heb. 5:12-13 NIV).
As we reach out and look for ways to serve God, He wants us to put our faith in Him to protect and provide for us. Only by trusting God and stepping out will we ever mature as Christians. Then we will experience the rich life He wishes us to have in Christ, a life not found just outside the back door.
The opinions expressed by authors may not necessarily reflect the opinion of FaithWriters.com.
If you died today, are you absolutely certain that you would go to heaven? You can be right now. CLICK HERE
JOIN US at FaithWriters for Free. Grow as a Writer and Spread the Gospel.
