Tomorrow morning, very early, Sharon will drive Jerry and me to Campo, California and drop us off at the Pacific Crest Trail trailhead. Then we will start walking north, and we will walk, and walk, and walk . . . We have been planning for this journey for three months and it is almost here. As I have pondered this adventure I was reminded of a sermon I preached at least ten years ago about the Journey of Faith. That messages was prompted by some reflections I was having at the time about The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, by J.R R. Tolkien. It is such a compelling story and I was thinking about what elements go in to making a truly great adventure yarn. That got me thinking about the parallels we can see in the adventure that all believers embark on when they begin this journey of faith with Jesus. All of us who follow Christ will encounter these aspects and stages in our journey.

The first is , Very Interesting Characters: From the heroes of faith to the villains and enemies that dog us in this walk we are surrounded by a host of fellow followers and a great could of witnesses. We are not alone on this journey.

The second is, A Compelling Purpose: We have a great commission and a high calling, Who is sufficient for these things? None of us, in or own strength. But we have a cause that is worthy of our utmost commitment, knowing that it is God’s strength that works mightily within us to accomplish His will and purpose.

The third is, A Daunting Opposition: Satan comes to kill, steal and destroy. We wrestle against spiritual principalities and forces of wickedness in heavenly places (and here on earth as well). Never underestimate the lengths to which he will go to resist us.

The fourth is, Unexpected Setbacks and Unforeseen Delays: Our Journey is not a straight line to the finish, it is more like that long and winding road that leads us eventually and ultimately to our destination. Failure is not failure if we get back on our feet and press onward and upward in our journey.

The fifth is, Surprising Breakthroughs: Though there are ups and downs on this walk, it is a walk from glory to glory with the mountain peaks rising higher and higher with each successive victory as we ascend the Mountain of the Lord. Our High King has an amazing ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

The sixth is, A Cliff-hanger Ending: We can’t see the specific end of our own journey but we can anticipate that there will be some white knuckle moments along the way. But we’ve read the end of the Book. We know who wins.

Finally, The Good Guys Win!