Backpacking--The Christian Hike?

Well, this last weekend, I had the privilege of going backpacking with my family! Those of you who know me well, know how much I just LOVE to hike! :) It is definitely not a favorite activity of mine! Anyways, so we were hiking up this 4 mile hike, with our backpacks on, and as we were hiking I was thinking about some spiritual lessons. ( I even started thinking about some spiritual lessons before we started off!) It was interesting, because the hike really wasn't all that hard to start out with. Me and my little sister plowed ahead, and we got the first 3 miles done in no time. And we were tired, but we weren't completely burned. Then my dad told us that the 4th mile was the hardest and steepest mile of all. As we were sitting and taking a short break while we waited for the rest of the family to catch up, one of my other sisters and I were talking about this up coming hard mile. We were questioning whether it was better to have the hard mile first? or last? My sister said, "I think it is better to have it last, because if you had it first, many people would start this trail and give up cause it was too hard. But when you have it last, the people are already so close to their goal that they are much less likely to give up." And It struck me that this trail is very much like our Christian walk/hike. We should call it a Christian hike, because it is more like a hike then a walk! That last mile that my family and I hiked, me and my youngest sister gave it all the strength we could! We hiked until it felt as though our hearts were going to fall out and run away cause they were pounding so fast. Then we would break for a few mins, and start at it again. That last mile reminded me of how things will be in the last day. God was gracious, and didn't put the hardest part of our Christianity first. That last stretch before He comes will be the hardest yet. But there will be so many more Christians traveling that trail then if God had put that hardest mile first. And the promise that we are almost there is what will get us through those last days. When Kari and I could see the last hill to climb, it gave us a new strength and energy to push just a little harder and soon we were there! Once we got to the lake, we both waded out to this Island, and put some food in our stomachs, and everything was beautiful! And the victory that we both felt was awesome! We made it! But it wasn't without struggles. One promise that I need to remind myself of more often, is that it is by the struggles that we can have complete assurance that we are traveling upwards. When there are no struggles, we are resting. And we need that rest every so often, but we aren't moving forward unless we are struggling. And it isn't just the struggle either, it is the victory through the struggles. Every victory is another step closer to our goal! Keep pushing forward my friend! The last mile will be the hardest of all, but we are even closer to our goal then before. NEVER give up!