Christian Home Educators of West Virginia
Lost and Found
by Dennis Sheppard



When my oldest son was 13, I thought it would be a good idea to take him on a primitive camping trip. This father and son adventure was intended to kick-start his journey into manhood, the time when a boy needs to leave childish things behind and become a man. Unexpectedly, it also became a time I learned a life-saving lesson.

After we set up camp, the next item on the itinerary was a hike through the woods. After all, how hard could it be to navigate only a short distance from the camp? I had a compass and, taking a quick visual, I knew which direction magnetic north was. What more did we need? We set out on a marked trail for about ten minutes, discovering that quite a distance can be covered in a short period of time.

It was now time to test my navigational skills by leaving the marked trail and finding our way back to camp through the wilderness. I will now note that this was one of my several classic redneck moments, one of those times when you say to all your buddies, "Hey, ya’ll watch this!" Then afterward one of your buddies says, "Wow! That didn’t turn out too good." Well, I was certain our camp was waiting for our return just over the peak directly in front of us. After topping the second peak with no camp in sight, I got a terrible feeling in my stomach. We wandered in circles for over an hour. I now had to come to grips with the situation. I was lost, and worse yet, I had led my son astray. At this point, I got on my knees, confessed my foolishness and pride, and asked God for a safe return to camp. Not long after my prayer, we came upon the marked trail at the exact spot from which we had left. It was as if God was returning me to the point of my rebellion from common sense.

Since then, I have completed a Tactical Navigational Course, and I have learned that navigating in unfamiliar territory can be an awesome experience when appropriate resources are utilized. However, all too often through foolishness, I have tended to do just what I did during my camping adventure - wander through unknown wilderness without the right equipment. I spent years following the opinions and philosophies of other men’s interpretation of Scripture, because I did not put forth the effort to utilize God’s resources. I have since learned that I do not have to be lost or led astray, because He has given me a compass, which is the Holy Spirit, and a map, which is the Scriptures. On the other hand, if I neglect to train and familiarize myself in the proper uses of these God-given tools, the result is being tossed about with every type of doctrine, living in a state of confusion, wandering around in circles.

Being physically lost taught me that I must first humble myself before I can rely on the Spirit and apply His Word in my life. As I hit my knees in the middle of the wilderness and asked God for mercy, He showed mercy and led me back to the correct path - the same way He leads me back when I may wander from my life’s path. I may not always have a marked trail to follow, but as long as I use my compass and my map I’m never lost. Now, if I can only find my keys….

"Dad to Dads" are written by CHEWV Board dads and sent monthly to our membership for whom we have email addresses.  As a CHEWV membership benefit, these are personal encouragements for dads to lead their homes and disciple their children.  We hope you enjoy these short messages from years past.  To sign up for our current emails, please contact testing@chewv.org.
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