Lost in a Labyrinth

Sometimes I have felt lost walking on a labyrinth, but the knowledge that I will reach the center is reassuring. There is a beautiful labyrinth made with different kinds of wood at my church All Saints Episcopal Church in Corpus Christi, TX.

All Saints Labyrinth

On Tuesday I walked with my EFM class on an outdoors labyrinth that was built by our EFM leader's husband when she was first diagnosed with ALS. I'm sorry I did not take a picture of it, so a description will have to do:

The labyrinth is built around a very old live oak tree in the center. The path is outlined with bricks in the ground, with a wide enough walkway for a walker or possibly a wheelchair. It is next to a river and surrounded by live oak trees with moss hanging down from the branches.

This time the labyrinth was about one-third obscured by weeds. As we traveled, we concentrated on where the path was, sometimes not being able to discern it. Small groups would be following each other, when suddenly one person would turn away. At one point, I felt very confident and was forging ahead to suddenly realize I was LOST! People would appear in different areas and directions, as it was easy to get turned around with the greenery hiding the red bricks.

This was the most mysterious and holy walk I have ever had on a labyrinth. The metaphor of getting lost on the path was graphically portrayed as I could not see the where the path was going in some spots. When I felt confident, I later realized my faith was in myself and not in God, which would develop into me feeling lost. Being so lost but knowing I was still within the labyrinth reminds me that no matter how I am feeling or what I am seeing, I am still in the energy (or love) of God.