The Farther Along
Years ago, one of the most unique people I know introduced me to a song by a man named Josh Garrels. The song is called Farther Along. I was struck not only by the passion in his voice, but by the connection between the lyrics and my own journey.
Music can do that, don’t you think? It connects with us in incomparable ways.
It turns out the song Farther Along is an old hymn that Garrels had redone in his own way. The idea in the original song is the farther along we get in this life, the more we will understand the circumstances we have walked through.
Farther along we'll know all about it
Farther along we'll understand why
So cheer up my brothers, live in the sunshine
We'll understand this, all by and by
What compels me about this song goes beyond its big idea.
When I was in my early twenties I worked with students at a church in Ohio. They had a Bible quizzing team, and in an effort to connect with them and be part of their journey, I joined them memorizing Philippians chapter three. Within this powerful chapter are a couple verses that have continually been a theme in my life.
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
I’m not there yet. But I keep going. I haven’t arrived yet, but I’m going to leave what’s behind and keep my eyes forward. I press forward.
I don’t know your story. I mean, I might, but it’s unlikely I really know what you’ve walked through.
In my own life, I have fallen a lot.
It’s embarrassing to really admit just how foolish I have been and how slowly I’ve learned the things God was teaching me. I’ve hurt people, broken relationships, and failed in every season.
Garrels’ words meet me in this place;
We're all cast-aways in need of rope
Hangin' on by the last threads of our hope
You are not alone. I am not alone. We are broken people who need to be put back together. We are not done yet. We can keep going because Jesus has thrown us a rope.
I remember standing by a specific bridge in Indiana, which is in this desolate area accessed by country roads. I stood there lamenting about the things I was carrying, my own failures and missteps, the ways I had pushed God away and charted my own course.
I heard Garrels’ words in that moment, falling on me in a new way;
That deadweight burden weighs a ton
I go down to the river and let it run
Wash away all the things you've done
Forgiveness alright
I either believe Jesus forgives or I don’t. I can sit in my failures or I can get up and take a step forward. I had a choice. Standing on that bridge, I made that choice.
Five years later, I sit here in my usual writing place with my decaf vanilla breve because I’m in my forties and it’s past eight o’clock.
I sit here full of hope, because I grabbed that rope.
I ran down to the river and let it run.
I believed that He washed me clean.
Forgiveness changed everything.
Over the past fifteen months, God has been developing something in me that I am eager to share. Let’s get a few things out of the way before I do. I know a very wise man who says “beat your critics to the punch”. I want to believe if you’re reading this, you’re not a critic. But what do I know? Let’s get this out of the way.
Are you going to try and sell us something?
I don’t think so, but I would have a Tupperware party if those were still things people did (Tupperware is amazing). You can always pay me to annoy you. I’m told I’m quite skilled at annoying people.
So are you going to try and be a social media influencer?
Honestly, I kind of hate that term. It feels arrogant to me. I know a lot of influencers who probably think Instagram has something to do with trafficking drugs. Likes, subscribers, and followers doesn’t make you influential.
I enjoy keeping up with people from different seasons of life, and if you want to connect on social media, I’m down. I have Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok, and on two of those I have posted zero times. If this was a text conversation I would send Elmo shrugging right now.
Who do you think you are? Like, you live in Iowa. You’re nobody.
YES. That’s the point. I am nobody. But I enjoy doing these things. I’ve said this before, people should do more things they enjoy doing. It’s a real problem in this world. Life is too short to not try new things.
Like Josh Garrels, I’m a nobody who:
Got changed by what I've been shown
It's more glory than the world has known
Keeps me ramblin' on
Ramblin’ on. Such a great term. That’s what I’m doing because as my friend Bob likes to remind me, I have something to say.
Allow me to introduce you to what I’m calling The Farther Along. It’s a blog and a podcast right now that is based on the idea that moving forward doesn’t happen by accident.
When I think of my own journey, YES the farther along I get, the more I understand things.
Yet nothing happens without a step forward.
God often invites us into things. Then He waits.
It’s annoying really, but He’s cool with that. He is obnoxiously patient.
He waits for us to take a step.
There are two visuals I grab hold of when it comes to The Farther Along.
The first visual is the mountain. Nobody climbs a mountain by accident. At least I don’t think they do. It requires a step, and then another. It requires determination and endurance. Keep going. Push forward.
It’s not always about getting to the top of the mountain. It’s just about taking another step.
The second visual is the arrow. We are not shooting the arrow, we are the arrow. One of my heroes, a guy named Louie, says we are flaming arrows in the hands of a merciful God. That gives me chills.
The idea that God grips, draws, anchors, aims, and releases me to move forward His mission is literally the greatest thing I can think of. God wants me on His team.
He propels me forward.
Let’s recap that for those like me who are drinking decaf:
Mountain = we step forward | Arrow = God propels us forward
Look again at the graphic. Do you see the visual?
My friend who created this concept is the living embodiment of holy creativity.
It’s a powerful picture that God has created here.
Move forward.
Take a step.
You see, the life we live today is often a result of choices we made three to five years ago. What if we made different choices now to produce better results later?
In a world of instant, God keeps His eyes on eternity.
We should too.
There's so much more to life than we’ve been told
It’s full of beauty that will unfold
I hope you’ll join me as we talk about the unfolding beauty in this life.
And learn how to move forward, one step at a time.