A Trail That Brought My Calling Into Fresh Focus
There are moments in ministry when God doesn’t change your calling—
He simply brings it back into view.
A few weeks ago, my 18-year-old son Eli unknowingly did that for me.
He and his friend Jack decided to take their first backpacking trip completely on their own—no dads along, no one guiding them on the trail. They planned, packed, prepared, and chose the route themselves. And it just so happened that the first section of the trail they chose was one I had backpacked years earlier: starting at Cosby Campground in Tennessee, climbing the steep Low Gap Trail, connecting with the Appalachian Trail, then continuing the ascent toward the Mount Cammerer fire tower.
I knew that route.
I remembered the switchbacks.
I remembered the strain of climbing nearly 3,000 feet in less than three miles with a full pack.
I remembered the weight of the climb and the beauty of it.
And because I’d walked it myself, I could prepare them.
I could tell them where the trail gets steep, when it eases up, what kind of pace they needed, and what to expect when the final push comes. I could help them pack smart, prepare well, and think clearly.
But I couldn’t hike it for them.
They had to take the steps.
They had to feel the weight.
They had to sweat, breathe, push, keep going, and experience the trail themselves.
Sometimes, as a guide, you walk beside someone.
And sometimes, the most loving thing you can do is send them off—prepared, equipped, and confident—because the journey has to shape them, not you.
When they came home, they told me the trail was every bit as challenging as I said… but they loved it.
(Except for a very windy, very sleepless night on top of the mountain.)
And as I listened, something stirred in me.
This—this—is the work God has woven into my life for decades.
I can’t take someone’s journey for them.
I can’t carry their pack.
I can’t remove the climb.
I can’t make the hard moments easy.
But I can prepare them.
I can equip them.
I can encourage them.
I can walk with them when the season calls for it—
and I can send them off when that’s what wisdom requires.
And that is exactly what I’ve done—
with students, college students, young adults, mission teams, church members, and now pastors and ministry leaders.
Different people.
Different mountains.
Same calling.
Ministry Is a Climb
Anyone who has spent time in ministry knows:
Leadership is a climb.
Not just the external challenges everyone can see—
but the internal ones few people ever notice:
self-doubt
isolation
fatigue
discouragement
hidden pressure
spiritual weight
fear of letting others down
the feeling that everyone looks to you, and you’re not sure you’re enough
Pastors face terrains their people rarely recognize.
And most walk those terrains alone.
But they weren’t meant to.
No leader is.
That day with Eli reminded me of something God has been shaping in me for decades:
Pastors need guides too.
Not to do the journey for them.
But to walk with them, equip them, and help them prepare for the climb God has called them to.
And that is why The Ascent Network exists.
What This Brought Back Into Focus (Practical Lessons)
This moment with Eli brought several spiritual truths back into view for me:
Every leader needs someone who knows the terrain. No one climbs alone.
**You can walk beside people, or you can send them—**but you cannot take their journey for them.
God uses our past climbs to equip us for someone else's present one. Nothing in your story is wasted.
Healthy leadership begins with being led by God. We guide because He guides.
Preparation matters. Some of the hardest climbs are made easier simply by having someone who has walked the path before you.
Reflection Question
Who has God placed in your life to walk beside—or send into their own journey—and how might God be inviting you to guide them with wisdom, humility, and grace?