Early in the trek after the Serving King, belief flows easily and quickly, the beginner’s quest always filled with baby steps manageable for even the weakest faith. Unbelief, the inability to embrace God’s revelation, never raises its head, never threatening the quest, never ushering in the possibility of broken off.  So the novice strolls through the early days of the trek after the Serving King, pride rising with every step of success, the inevitable fruit of victory. Pride thrives in the early days of the quest.  These are indeed the easy days.

But baby steps soon fade in the distance as the Serving King lengthens His stride, climbing steeper terrains, challenging the belief of the novice, revelation revealing ever-increasing difficulties for those still on the trail of the Serving King.  Belief, once easy, an effortless affair, now teeters with each new insight into His ways of being and doing.  Gone are the easy days of trekking after the Serving King.  Now comes the difficult terrain conquered only by those whose faith is strong enough to climb even the steepest ascents.

And the Serving King will not spare the grafted ones, just as He did not spare the natural branches, from ever-increasing insights into His ways of being and doing. These are days of advanced tactics, ways of being and doing made known only to those who have travelled deepest into the quest after the Serving King.

Each day brings new and deeper understanding into the ways of the Serving King, a deepening understanding of His ways are not our ways.  Pride quickly fades in the face of ever-increasing challenges far exceeding the abilities of those trekking on the heels of the Serving King.

But the quest after the Serving King is never about success in doing; instead, it is unmitigated faith in Him who challenges, belief in what He can do in and through those who simply believe.  There is nothing “…keepeth us back” but unbelief.  So comes the challenge to step where He steps, to be and do as He does with each passing day, to understand all failures at doing are part of the success of belief.  Only those too fearful to try will fail in the quest after the Serving King.  No one is broken off for failure.  Only unbelief threatens the quest.  Step into the success of failure…