Travel Light

     I have been intrigued with Genghis Khan for several years. His ideas and tactics are fascinating, and the way in which he swept across Asia conquering other empires in a series of rapid and fearless attacks, is nearly unheard of. There are a multitude of things that aided the Khan is his endeavor to rule Asia, but one in particular caught my attention.
    There were many developed armies in the early 1200's, yet the Mongolian force stood out from the rest because of its exceptional speed. There was little time for the targeted nation to prepare for the attack by the time they discovered the Mongols were coming. The Khan's cavalry could travel sixty miles or more in a single day. This was about double of what any other army on earth could manage at the time. One reason they were able to make such good time was due to the fact that each soldier took several extra horses with him on the warpath to keep from exhausting a single mount. Another of their secrets? Travel light.

    The Mongols had learned to make light armor from padded leather or other materials. In this more flexible armor, they were also able to maneuver with greater agility than those soldiers wearing heavy metal suits. Even their shields were of lighter materials. Instead of carrying great saddlebags loaded with food, or having to travel slowly in order for supply wagons to  keep up, each soldier became self-sufficient in hunting down nutrients. Although they did travel with small amounts of dried foods, they also carried items like fishhooks, which, along with their bows, made them quite able to fend for themselves. They even, on occasion, drank horse blood. This they were able to do without injury to their mounts, by "letting" a vein in the horse's neck.

    There is no doubt in my mind that we are on the final stretch toward eternity. How are you traveling? There is no hope for any of us unless we can take a lesson from the ancient Mongolian cavalry and travel light. Matthew 6:19a reads: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth." I hope I'm not taking this scripture out of context when I say that I don't believe it only applies to things we traditionally think of as treasure. I believe it could also apply to all the other things we get so attached to in this life— things like our opinions and our ways of doing things. Sometimes we know our attachments are a burden as we carry things like fears, grudges, and dissatisfaction, but we hang onto them because the leap of faith it would take to let them go seems impossible.

    As we journey over this last treacherous path toward Home, let's be willing to rid ourselves of some weight. Drop the critical spirit, the weight of unmovable opinions, the burden of fears. Let's travel light toward our goal, able to fend off the attack of the evil one. If you and I are able to learn to trust completely in God, we will someday be able to make the final crossing of the Jordan, unhindered by all the cares of this world.