It is official. The dates have been confirmed, plane tickets purchased and seats assigned--ones with "extra leg room, please" in hopes the lengthy flight will be a bit more comfortable. The 3-week-long trip is no longer a someday or a possibility but a reality.
Visiting Scotland is not for the faint of heart, I thought. It's not all that different from living life with God.
The small country of Scotland occupies the northern third of an island. It has a 60-mile-long land border with England on the southeast and is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the northeast, and the Irish Sea to the south. More than 790 outlying small islands are included in its area.
Moving Atlantic depressions bring strong winds continuously throughout the year, making it the windiest country in Europe.Those winds can be bitter and biting, the kind that chill to the very marrow of both visitor and inhabitant.
While its temperate climate tends to be very changeable, it is not normally extreme. The weather, however, can be grey and gloomy. The sun shines just over 25% of the time.
Scotland as a destination is never touted by travel agents as "warm and sunny." A visitor must be prepared for inclement weather with the possibility, even the probability, of becoming chilled and rained upon.
Why, then, would anyone want to deal with that?
Because it is worth it.
As a 16-year-old exchange student in the summer of 1961, I lived with a family in sheep farming country in East Lothian, Scotland, eighteen miles east of Edinburgh, its capital. I came from a small town with a population of 5,000 and was raised in a sheltered environment; the experience was one that was life-changing. I had traveled by train cross-country from Oregon to New York City before flying to Britain. All alone in a very large world, I initially experienced a case of homesickness of grand proportions--the term "homesick" could not be more descriptive.
In a time pre-dating electronic communication, contact with family and friends was limited to handwritten letters, sent and received via Air Mail and a single long-distance phone call from my parents, a surprise for me and a splurge for them.
It was just God and me.
Fifty-eight years later, my eldest daughter and grandgirl will be going with me as I return to visit the siblings and their families of my Scottish family.
Scotland is a country filled with ancient history; castles from centuries ago reveal themselves as one drives around a bend in the road. The scenery is spectacular, nature's colors rich and vibrant. From farmlands to majestic mountains, with water everywhere, its pristine beauty compensates for its diminutive size. The Scots are warm, friendly, and outgoing. The lilt of their accent on my native tongue of English is like listening to music. The sound of bagpipes causes my soul to melt.
Scotland and its people are a part of my being. I am possessed--from the time I first stepped off the train and was greeted by my host family all those years ago.
The same can be said of God. He has possessed me.
I vividly remember approaching the minister when I was a small five-year-old as he greeted parishioners heading out the door after the Sunday morning church service. When he acknowledged my presence, I quietly said, "I want to go to heaven."
The journey began.
Living life with God is not for the faint of heart. He does not change to live with humankind; we must be changed in order to live with Him.
Many speak of living life for God. Living life with Him is a completely different matter. When one lives for God, that often translates into having a project or idea, enacting it and bringing it about, then asking Him to bless it--the efforts of mankind, not the work of God.
Living with God means giving up my life and my desires and allowing Him to have free rein.
He requires a total commitment--nothing more, nothing less. Since that goes against everything within the being and nature of humankind, I suspect that is why there are so few who are willing to walk the narrow path, the one leading to life.
Why, then, would anyone want to do that?
I am His creation. All that He does comes from a base of love and desire for friendship. He knows me better than I know myself and wants only the best for me. Living life with God is living life where it really matters--in the eternal, the long-term rather than the short-term.
He is always with me, walking me through the worst and hardest of times, sharing in the best of times. God is the One I turn to daily, asking for guidance and wisdom, strength, forgiveness, and healing.
In short, He is worth it.
And this is where visiting Scotland and living life with God aren't all that different from one another: Each begins with an intense desire for personal experience; each requires a determination and commitment to follow through and to not be dissuaded if difficult circumstances arise. For a Scottish tourist, the weather can present a harsh deterrent. On a spiritual level, life with God is solitary, often with great demands. The road leading to life is arduous--not for the faint of heart.
And this is where they differ: A visit to Scotland is going to last three weeks; living life with God lasts....Well, it lasts two lifetimes--this one and the next to come.
"Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matthew 7:13, 14