Footprints in the Sand Two - Electric Boogaloo

And the man asked, "Lord, why is it that at the top of these sand dunes there are two sets of footprints, but in the valleys there are only one?"

And Jesus replied, "Because when we went across the peaks, I walked with you, but when we were in the valleys, I carried you."

After a profound silence filled with gratitude and awe, the man looked around at all the sand and said, "By the way, where the heck are we?"

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When, after a certain point in his life, St. Augustine looked back, he could clearly see the pattern that God had laid out in his life and he knew that God had directed his path.

Then St. Augustine looked to the future and realized that he still had no idea where God was leading him.

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I am lost. Not in the profound sense of someone who is terrified and alone. No, I am lost in the Lord. I am standing on a giant sand dune, looking back at the wonderful path God has given me. I have strayed from time to time, but God has always dragged me back on course, with the occassional kick to the head for good measure. And here I am. I can clearly see the path I've taken. But when I turn around and look ahead, I have no idea where I'm going.

Today, I enrolled in college. Again. For the first time in ten years. I always knew that someday I would go back, but I didn't see this coming from 100 miles away. But God knew and I followed God.

Here now are the mile markers that lead to this event.

I left Century Theatres in 2000 and decided to find a nice quiet job. I ended up here at Yasutomo. This move gave me weekends and evenings free. I quickly surmised that I had the time to return to an active church life. I rejoined the choir and started reattending church on Sundays. Shortly thereafter, the youth assistant left to join the seminary. Seeing the youth pastor struggle, I volunteered to help out from time to time.

A year or so passed and I started to work on my novel. Just as I was really getting into it, I changed course abruptly in order to finish my website. The website took a few months to complete and was exhausting work. Literally the day I finished it, with every intent to return to work on my novel, one of the youth in my church asked if I'd be interested in becoming Stage Manager at a local theater. I got one of those tingly spider-sense kind of things and took the job.

My friendship grew with the youth and with other actors and directors. The play ended about three months later and I threw myself into the novel full time for the next 3 years or so. In the meantime, I had cultivated some serious friendships. We continued to hang out and do youth type things. When the youth pastor abruptly left my church, I took over as the youth leader. My friendship with the youths helped to ease the transition.

Cut to: This summer, after finishing the latest draft of the novel, I was wondering what to do next. My youth friends (having just completed their first year of college) walked up to me and said, "Will, we want to make a film this summer." I think my jaw must have dropped. "Okay," was my response. Over Columbus Day Weekend, we shot for two days the five minute pilot I had written years before but had never had a chance to film for lack of actors.

When I was done filming, I looked at the footage and something remarkable occurred to me. I really suck at film making. And then the whole spidey sense thing kicked in again and I just knew that it was time to go back to school to become a film maker.

I left high school wanting to be a film maker and gave up because I wasn't ready. I left the Navy to become a film maker and gave up because I wasn't ready. Now, here, fourteen years after my last attempt, I am finally returning to film school. Each step along the way can be clearly seen and chronicled by me. I know where I walked side by side with Jesus and I know where He carried me. But when I turn around and look ahead, there are no footprints before me. I have no idea where I'm going or why I'm going there.

I may be lost, but I have the ultimate navigator with me. I will fear no evil, for He is with me.