What Visa are You Waiting For?
My friend Azahel recently made the journey of a lifetime: trekking through the Himalayas toward Everest Base Camp.
He walked beneath some of the tallest mountains on earth, surrounded by jagged peaks, breathtaking beauty, and increasingly thin air. He carried what he needed on his back and placed one tired foot in front of the other for mile after mile.
But before the boots, backpacks, mountains, and memories came something far less inspiring: the paperwork.
To enter Nepal, Azahel needed a visa. A passport identifies who you are; a visa helps explain why you are there. As part of the process, he had to declare the purpose of his journey:
Business? Tourist? Or pilgrimage?
Azahel checked tourist.
Technically, that was exactly what he was. He was traveling to Nepal to see something extraordinary, experience the mountains, and make memories he would carry home.
But somewhere along the trail, his tourism became a pilgrimage.
The higher he climbed, the more the journey began doing something within him. The mountains became more than scenery. The silence became more than the absence of noise. The physical struggle, the thinning air, the people he encountered, and the overwhelming scale of creation began turning his attention toward God.
He entered Nepal as a tourist. But he returned home as a pilgrim.
Tourist or Pilgrim?
Perhaps that is a picture of what God wants to do in all of us.
A tourist asks, “What can I see?”
A pilgrim asks, “God, what are You showing me?”
A tourist asks, “What can I get from this journey?”
A pilgrim asks, “God, what do You want to grow within me through this journey?”
A tourist measures the experience by comfort, convenience, and enjoyment. A pilgrim understands that even discomfort, delay, and difficulty can become sacred ground in the hands of God.
The difference is not always the road we are walking. Sometimes, it is the way we are walking it.
Hebrews 11 describes people of faith who “acknowledged that they were foreigners and strangers on earth” and were “longing for a better country—a heavenly one” (Hebrews 11:13, 16).
They understood that life was not simply somewhere to settle down, stay comfortable, and collect experiences. They were pilgrims. They were being led somewhere—and, along the way, God was forming them into someone.
When we begin to see life that way, everything changes.
The mountain becomes a place to worship.
The valley becomes a place to trust.
The detour becomes a place to listen.
The difficult climb becomes a place to grow.
Even the season we would never have chosen can become the place where God does some of His deepest work within us.
Change the Purpose of Your Journey
Maybe you have been approaching this season like a tourist—asking whether you are enjoying it, whether it is comfortable, or whether it is giving you what you hoped for.
What if God is inviting you to change the purpose of your journey?
Do not simply get through this season. Let God use it. Pay attention. Look for His presence in the people walking beside you. Listen for His voice in the silence. Trust Him when the path grows steep and the air feels thin. Receive the beautiful moments with gratitude, and allow even the difficult miles to shape you.
You may not have chosen this road. You may not yet understand where it is leading. But no part of the journey has to be wasted when it is surrendered to Jesus.
Perhaps the most important question is not simply:
“Where is this journey taking me?”
Perhaps it is:
“Jesus, who are You making me along the way?”
What kind of visa are you traveling with?
“They were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.” —Hebrews 11:16
He walked beneath some of the tallest mountains on earth, surrounded by jagged peaks, breathtaking beauty, and increasingly thin air. He carried what he needed on his back and placed one tired foot in front of the other for mile after mile.
But before the boots, backpacks, mountains, and memories came something far less inspiring: the paperwork.
To enter Nepal, Azahel needed a visa. A passport identifies who you are; a visa helps explain why you are there. As part of the process, he had to declare the purpose of his journey:
Business? Tourist? Or pilgrimage?
Azahel checked tourist.
Technically, that was exactly what he was. He was traveling to Nepal to see something extraordinary, experience the mountains, and make memories he would carry home.
But somewhere along the trail, his tourism became a pilgrimage.
The higher he climbed, the more the journey began doing something within him. The mountains became more than scenery. The silence became more than the absence of noise. The physical struggle, the thinning air, the people he encountered, and the overwhelming scale of creation began turning his attention toward God.
He entered Nepal as a tourist. But he returned home as a pilgrim.
Tourist or Pilgrim?
Perhaps that is a picture of what God wants to do in all of us.
A tourist asks, “What can I see?”
A pilgrim asks, “God, what are You showing me?”
A tourist asks, “What can I get from this journey?”
A pilgrim asks, “God, what do You want to grow within me through this journey?”
A tourist measures the experience by comfort, convenience, and enjoyment. A pilgrim understands that even discomfort, delay, and difficulty can become sacred ground in the hands of God.
The difference is not always the road we are walking. Sometimes, it is the way we are walking it.
Hebrews 11 describes people of faith who “acknowledged that they were foreigners and strangers on earth” and were “longing for a better country—a heavenly one” (Hebrews 11:13, 16).
They understood that life was not simply somewhere to settle down, stay comfortable, and collect experiences. They were pilgrims. They were being led somewhere—and, along the way, God was forming them into someone.
When we begin to see life that way, everything changes.
The mountain becomes a place to worship.
The valley becomes a place to trust.
The detour becomes a place to listen.
The difficult climb becomes a place to grow.
Even the season we would never have chosen can become the place where God does some of His deepest work within us.
Change the Purpose of Your Journey
Maybe you have been approaching this season like a tourist—asking whether you are enjoying it, whether it is comfortable, or whether it is giving you what you hoped for.
What if God is inviting you to change the purpose of your journey?
Do not simply get through this season. Let God use it. Pay attention. Look for His presence in the people walking beside you. Listen for His voice in the silence. Trust Him when the path grows steep and the air feels thin. Receive the beautiful moments with gratitude, and allow even the difficult miles to shape you.
You may not have chosen this road. You may not yet understand where it is leading. But no part of the journey has to be wasted when it is surrendered to Jesus.
Perhaps the most important question is not simply:
“Where is this journey taking me?”
Perhaps it is:
“Jesus, who are You making me along the way?”
What kind of visa are you traveling with?
“They were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.” —Hebrews 11:16
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