Christian life is a walk

The apostle Paul was a genius when he said the Christian life is a race that needs to be run to the end. I was walking home from the shops today and, thinking about the metaphor, decided that it was difficult to push it too far.
The walk I took begins fairly easily with a down hill bit followed by a foot path with patchy shade, after a while you cross a road and there begins a long, steady uphill walk along desert like dirt and rocks with occasional shade. This part seems endless and each time you look up it feels like you are no closer to the goal. Then Suddenly you are at the top and over the bridge and an interesting, shady can be enjoyed with the end in sight.

Christianity, like the walk, has easy, good bits in it, down hills, shade, footpaths. It also has what feels like never ending boringness, hardship, spiritual dryness, lack of energy, what feels like lack of progress. Both of these are good and particularly the less easy parts make you stronger/fitter.

Christianity, like walking, is easier and more pleasant when shared with company. This is why we go to church and bible study, so we don't get discouraged and tired as much. In saying that both Christianity and walking can (and sometimes should) be done without other people with great personal benefit of self discipline.

The Christian walk, like a physical walk, has a goal and a plan and a direction to take. It is good to keep the goal in mind and not to be distracted by attractively interesting and shady looking paths. This is a particular temptation in the dry, hard bits of both walks. If you get distracted it means at best a detour that wastes time and at worst getting lost altogether.

God is like the father who is taking his children for the walk, holding their hands and guiding them. God doesn't mind if we fall over, have a little tantrum, have a little pity party, sit and sulk for a while, as long as we get up and continue to walk. However as every parent knows, tantrums and hissy fits don't solve much, they only waste energy. What God is less pleased about is giving up the walk altogether and being our own boss and taking what looks like the easy option of a car. Initially our way looks better, quicker, easier, but then we finish up like the space people in Wall-E who can't even walk.

Christian life is a walk, pleasant and hard, hot and cold, wet and dry, thirsty and refreshed. The more you do it and practice the stronger you get. Obviously not a perfect metaphor but it can bee pushed pretty far before it becomes inaccurate.