You're listening to Encounter, a simple daily podcast of sacred and mindful Christian

meditations.

You can listen here, but if you would enjoy being able to search and favor it, forward

and journal as you listen, I encourage you to download the encountering piece mobile

app where all the meditations are free as they should be.

This morning was crisp and clear when I left early for my favorite writing spot, a tiny

coffee shop in our neighborhood.

I sat down with my Bible and journal to start my day, but I noticed a young man sitting

across from me.

His face was buried in one of the thickest textbooks I had ever seen.

I asked what he was studying, and he said he was studying for his firefighter exam.

We spoke for a while about everything he was learning at the Academy.

He laughed and said, in the beginning he thought it was just about squirting water on a fire.

But the physical and emotional toll was intense.

He had already dropped out, but he was dedicated and was going to follow his chosen path.

He was committed to following his dream no matter the cost.

This meditation from Mark chapter 8 is about following a chosen path, pursuing a goal

at great expense, dedicating yourself to sacrificing so many earthly pleasures to attain

a higher goal.

Then here we will be meditating on the expense of following the highest goal of all, following

God.

So to begin, whether dawn or dusk, allow these next 15 minutes to be a sacred time of meditation,

...