Narrow Path

​Matthew 7:13–14 (NIV): “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
 
My father-in-law and I were swapping stories over dinner one day at Mama’s and Nana’s Cafe. The conversation turned to cattle as it usually does. He shared some new humorous tales about his recently sold open cows.
 
Then, he looked at me and said, “You know, cattle never go where you want them to.”
 
This is true. I’ve experienced this, as I am sure many of you have.
 
The sun had been up for only a few hours when my father-in-law and his help (including me) finally split the cow/calf pairs for weaning. The calves would stay near the home place while we hauled the cows to a different pasture.
 
We had carefully set up the cattle fence so that the cows could walk easily through the funnel to the waiting trailers. However, we experienced one problem.
 
A big problem.
 
The cows did not want to walk through the funnel to the trailers. They tried to ram the fence. They tried to intimidate us so that they could run by our rattle paddles. They would rather suffer yelling and pain (and the possibility of being shipped to the sale barn) rather than walk through that narrow funnel into the trailers.
 
The narrow path provided a better situation. It provided better food, a chance for maturity and growth, and less pain in the future.
 
But, the narrow path provided pain at the moment. It provided uncertainty at the moment. The narrow path demanded that the cows give up their independence in exchange for all of the blessings.
 
In the moment, cattle would rather take the broad path that leads to destruction rather than the narrow path that leads to life.
 
We are a lot like cattle. God provided a path to blessing and eternal life. He told us to walk down it. He told us to follow Jesus.
 
A simple task.
 
However, for some reason, we would rather go anywhere but that path. We would rather take the path that brings ultimate pain and destruction rather than walk down the path that brings life.
 
Which path are you on?