We probably all have been lost at some point in our lives. I remember getting lost in the woods when I was around the age of ten. I had no idea which way to proceed, and there was no trail to follow. No matter what direction I tried, I seemed to get deeper and deeper into the forest. I panicked, running in one direction or another. Somehow and in spite of myself, I found a way back home. After that, I resolved to never let myself lose control again, even when lost.

WHY PEOPLE GET LOST

Perhaps we get lost routinely while driving. This does not happen as frequently as it once did because cars today have digital maps and voice directions to follow, unless you are “off the grid,” of course. Then, you are on your own.

Sometimes people learning to navigate a boat or a small plane get lost. They are not sufficiently familiar with the proper procedures, perhaps, or they are caught in a current or a headwind or storm. Or, they have a medical emergency and become disoriented. In these cases, time is a crucial variable because at some point, fuel will run out. The act of getting lost can have deadly consequences in that case.

Weather is another variable to consider. Fog or snow can blind us to the obvious and people often get lost under those circumstances. My family moved to Wichita Falls, TX just a few months after the devastating tornado of April 1979 leveled a quarter of that city and killed forty-two people. The tornado was a mile and one half wide and blew down street signs, telephone poles, billboards and, of course, homes. I heard from at least one person who could not find where his home was or used to be. He explained that we subconsciously note landmarks and other structures when we drive even a familiar route (e.g., a large elm tree, a red barn, a bar-b-que stand.) But when the tree is blown down, the barn is obliterated and the small food stand is whisked away, we have no reference points to guide us. These points are important resources to us.

THE IMPORTANCE OF RESOURCES

When we grieve, or encounter a sudden emotional shock, we depend on resources as well to help us find the way. These resources include family and friends, church and, perhaps, community resources such as mental health services, substance abuse counselors and so forth. Absent any or all of these, it may take longer to recover from the disorientation. As we age, isolation sometimes creeps up on us as children move away, friends die off and our ability to go “out and about” is curtailed.

In this post, I want to discuss some practical strategies if you find yourself lost and disoriented, regardless of if you are physically, emotionally or spiritually lost. There is a way forward, perhaps several ways and if you can calmly access your situation, you may be able to find the way.

WHEN YOU ARE PHYSICALLY LOST

Today, hikers, hunters and fishermen carry GPS devices (such as Spot) with them. Even ordinary people who never venture from town may have an iPhone model 14 or higher that serves as a satellite phone as well, so you can call for help absent Wi-Fi signals or cellular coverage. The assumption here is that you have neither.

FIRST THINGS FIRST

Survival experts advise that the first thing you should do is find a dry, comfortable place to sit down and calmy take stock of your predicament. And while you do not want to panic, you should be constantly alert. In the wilderness, you are just another animal among many, and the animals that survive are those that are constantly vigilant. If night is approaching, or a storm or fog or blizzard seems imminent, you should make a camp and remain where you are for the time being. A large boulder or a fallen tree can be the start of a shelter. Tree boughs you are able to break off can block the rain and wind. If you need to, gather wood to start a fire. If possible and using whatever you can find like flat rocks, dig a hole in which to locate the fire. Be sure that the immediate area under and around the fire is clear from dry brush and avoid starting a fire if the wind is blowing unless you can be sure burning embers won’t spread. You can use green leaves and wet branches to generate smoke and hence a signal during the day.

You should consider whether or not to just stay where you are rather than try to hike your way out. If you know for a fact that people will come looking for you, you might make it more dificult to be found if you constantly move about. In snow, you may be able to write a short message in the snow (e.g., “SOS”) large enough to be seen by a plane. If you must move, then perhaps you can leave a trail. If you have a knife, you can cut gashes in the trees as you go for rescuers to follow. If you do not have a knife, piling rocks into unusual but consistent formations every twenty feet or breaking the branches of bushes or trees may indicate your direction. Tearing pieces of your clothing to fasten on bushes and shrubs can also be a lifesaver. If you did have a fire overnight, the charcoal remains of your fire can be used to mark your way or leave a message. You should also deliberately make noise as you travel. Talk to yourself, sing or such, because that makes you less likely to surprise a mama bear with her cubs. You should also actively listen to sounds around you. Do you hear any cars, noises that suggest human activity, running water, etc.

Consider whether you can retrace your steps. Were there any memorable features you noted? Did you take any photos that might guide you? If you are on a well-worn path, continue on the path. If there is no path, going downhill rather than uphill is the best bet. You are more likely to find help in a valley than on a mountain top. If you come to a stream or a river, then follow the direction of the water down stream.

WHICH WAY IS NORTH?

You probably won’t have a compass, but you can still find directions (roughly speaking.) If the sun is out, place a stick vertically in the ground. Then, place a small rock at the tip of the shadow. Half an hour later, place a second rock at the tip of where the shadow is now. Now, connect the two rocks with a line or a straight stick. This is an east-west line. If you put your left foot by the first stone and your right foot by the second stone, you will be facing north. Another way to find north is to look for moss growing on trees or rocks. While moss can grow on any side of a tree or rock, all things being equal, moss prefers to grow on the north side of objects because the north side is generally darker and more humid. In the Southern Hemisphere, the reverse is true. Once you are facing north, then south is behind you. East is to your right and west is to your left. North is generally the most important direction when you are lost, because we are used to seeing maps where north is at the top. This spatial orientation affects our brains and how we process data as well.

IF YOU ARE INJURED

Of course, if you injured yourself, then the circumstances may be more problematic. If you are bleeding, your first task is to stop the bleeding. Sometimes applying pressure over the wound for ten of fifteen minutes is all that is needed. Other times, tearing and tying a piece of clothing can be used as a pressure dressing. As a last resort a tourniquet may be necessary if the blood is bright red, spurting and cannot be controlled otherwise. It is generally placed just above the wound and as an absolute last resort.¹

Fractures of the arm or leg probably need to be splinted to prevent further injury. A tree branch may suffice for this. If an object has punctured the globe of your eye, do not try to remove it. You may cause more damage. Likewise if you have been impaled with a pointed object. A good resource to carry in your backpack is a first aid guide.

THE NEED FOR WATER

You will need water before you need food. It is possible to collect some water from morning dew, but not in sufficient amounts to sustain you for long. So, you will need to search. And once again, you are more likely to locate water if you travel downhill than uphill. Once you locate water, you will more than likely find a source of food near the water, either from fish, frogs or other aquatic life or from mammals that drink from the same source. People once believed that running water was safe for drinking, but that is not necessarily true anymore. With all the contaminants being poured into the environment, only a testing kit can tell you for sure that water is safe to drink. Water that is clear, free from scum or debris, and odorless is possibly safer to drink than water that is not, but again, without a testing kit, you cannot not know positively that water is safe.

As far as food goes, you may be able to catch fish or small mammals by setting deadfall traps (assuming you have bait.) Survivalists will remind you that you can eat bugs. But regardless of what you eat, be sure to bury the remains so that larger predators are not attracted by the scent.

If you find a body of water with a muddy shore, it might not hurt to leave some tracks. But don’t stray from the shoreline. Many places in the wild have quicksand and you may not be aware of it until you step into it.

In a disaster when normal cell sevice is down, often text messaging remains. You can even use your text messaging feature to call for help (911.) See how to here.

SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

There are all sorts of dangers that different environments present. If you plan on hiking in the Southwestern U.S., be aware that arroyos are a deadly trap for many visitors. They may seem bone dry, but in ten minutes time, you can drown as water rushes through them at breakneck speed.

Other people like to explore caves. Usually this requires special equipment, such as ropes, lamps and above all, experience and a greater than average level of fitness. Snakes, bears and other predators often take refuge in caves, and besides getting lost, many amateur cavers die from falls. And, you certainly won’t be able to get a cell signal when you are stranded two hundred feet underground. It may be very unlikely that you’ll be found alive in a cave.

FOREWARNED IS FOREARMED

I have not covered every possible contingency in this post. The old adage that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is worth remembering before you plan an excursion. Take thirty minutes to learn about the terrain you’ll be hiking in, what surrounds the area and what to do in an emergency. Take note of the weather forecast (especially the temperature) and wear warm clothing and carry extra water as the mercury calls for. Also, be sure to let someone know where you’ll be and when you expect to be home.

WHEN YOU ARE EMOTIONALLY OR PSYCHOLOGICALLY LOST

ANHEDONIA

People can become emotionally lost because of different reasons. One such reason is depression, specifically because of a disorder known as “anhedonia.” Anhedonia is an emotional detachment from others as well as an inability to feel pleasure and build or maintain relationships with others. With anhedonia, those experiences and activities which you once enjoyed no longer interest you. It can be caused by chronic pain, substance abuse, PTSD, coping with a deadly disease and occasionally eating disorders. Sometimes, disorders such as hypothyroidism and Parkinsonism can also be at the root of this problem. The treatment for anhedonia deals with diagnosing the cause of the problem (e.g., thyroid function tests) and correcting any metabolic imbalances. There are other antidepressant options such as medications as well. As many as 3%-4% of the population suffers from this “joylessness. In the U.S., 3%-4% means between ten and thirteen million people. These are ordinary Americans, husbands and wives, children and parents who might once again recover their emotional health and the pleasures of life with treatment. Instead of wandering aimlessly about in some emotionally-barren wilderness, they can find their way back to joy.

GRIEF

Another cause of losing your way emotionally is grief.

The poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) once wrote a book called The Divine Comedy in which he included a very popular poignant comment, to wit: “In the middle of our life’s journey, I found myself in a dark wood.” Dante was walking through life one day just as he had for many prior years and then, whether because of inattention or disorientation, or some other miscalculation or circumstance or happenstance, he found himself lost. He could not determine where he was, and absent that crucial piece of information, he could not decide which way to proceed. He was puzzled, and if he was panic-stricken, I could certainly identify with that!

Joseph Luzzi describes such a day and dark wood when he suddenly and unexpectedly found himself Dante’s shoes:

That day came six years ago for me, when my pregnant wife, Katherine, died suddenly in a car accident. Forty-five minutes before her death, she delivered our daughter, Isabel, a miracle of health rescued by emergency cesarean. I had left the house that morning at 8:30 to teach a class; by noon, I was a father and a widower.

A few days later, I found myself standing in a cemetery outside Detroit in the cold rain, watching as my wife’s body was returned to the earth close to where she was born. The words for the emotions I had known till then — pain, sadness, suffering — no longer made sense, as a feeling of cosmic, paralyzing sorrow washed over me. My personal loss felt almost beside the point: A young woman who had been bursting with life was now no more. I could feel part of me going down with Katherine’s coffin. It was the last communion I would ever have with her, and I have never felt so unbearably connected to the rhythms of the universe.“

Luzzi found comfort in the words of Dante, and yet still notes:

The Divine Comedy” didn’t rescue me after Katherine’s death. That fell to the love of my family and friends, my passion for teaching and writing, the support of colleagues and students, and above all the gift of my daughter. But I would not have been able to make my way without Dante. In a time of soul-crunching loneliness — I was surrounded everywhere by love, but such is grief — his words helped me refuse to surrender.”

There is a way “back” from grief. For example, there is a thirteen-week program called Griefshare, where you meet other people who are grieving. I personally went through this program after my wife of forty-six years died. It is a series of videos and group sessions where you interact with other people who are grieving from some sort of loss, whether the death of a spouse, a parent, even a miscarriage. I highly recommend this.

SHOCK

Shock is another cause of losing one’s way emotionally or psychologically. It can lead to a reorientation of one’s feeling on a very basic level, much as the magnetic moments in a magnet loose their power of attraction by a blow to the bar or stone.

One of my favorite poems by Emily Dickinson is called “A Formal Feeling.” In this she writes:

After great pain, a formal feeling comes –
The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs –
The stiff Heart questions ‘was it He, that bore,’
And ‘Yesterday, or Centuries before’?

The Feet, mechanical, go round –
A Wooden way
Of Ground, or Air, or Ought –
Regardless grown,
A Quartz contentment, like a stone –

This is the Hour of Lead –
Remembered, if outlived,
As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow –
First – Chill – then Stupor – then the letting go –

Note that the poetess speaks of a shock (“a great pain. . .”) She loses her spontaneity, and her thoughts slow down as she shuffles through the day. Finally, like a person freezing to death, the emotional light that burns within her spirit is extinguished. She either becomes institutionalized with schizophrenia or she takes or loses her life. But again, it doesn’t have to be this way and this dreadful outcome can be avoided if one such a person as her seeks help. Schizophrenia and some borderline personality disorders can also may a person feel lost. The disorders affect a person’s senses. Just a person who cannot see well may lose the trail on which they are walking in the forest, or another hiker cannot hear automobiles just over the next ridge, people suffering these maladies cannot process what their senses are telling them. They don’t feel loved, because (in the case of paranoia at least) they don’t believe the person who expresses love to them. They have trouble with relationships and are prone to emotional outbursts. These people can be manipulative and cunning, and (or) they can be prone to self-harm. They also tend to use illegal drugs, abuse alcohol, etc. In some cases, the dynamic is not yet clearly understood, but the outcome is certain.

ALCOHOLISM

Alcoholism can cause a person to lose touch with their emotions. Alcohol is a drug, and drugs taken to extremes can numb the senses, cause blackouts and sensory loss. People eventually lose track of their feeling if, indeed, they have any feelings left at all.”

WHEN YOU ARE SPIRITUALLY LOST

Just as we can and do get lost in the physical world, we can also lose our way in the spiritual world. Consider the maze with its dead ends and false trails. These represent ways or obstacles in our journey to be one with our Creator. Sin, atheism, false religion, materialism, occult practices, trying to work our way to Heaven, indifference to spiritual needs all create barriers for the pilgrim. An increasing number of people (in the U.S. and Western Europe) have abandoned their faith. In fact, the predicament in America is so dreadful that Christians in Africa and Asia are crossing our borders to serve as missionaries to the people in the United States!

SIN

Sin can be described as nothing more than “the world, the flesh and the devil.” But as it is also said, “the devil is in the details.” Sin can also be unforgiveness, unbelief, blasphemy, pride, hatred, greed, gluttony, drunkenness, idolatry, adultery and other sexual sin and envy or jealously to name just a few others. While Catholics have categories of sin, Protestants generally believe simply that “sin is sin.” It separates us from God, from His mercy, from His forgiveness, from His love. On that conclusion, Catholics and Protestants can agree.

I don’t intend to discuss every possible iteration of sin, but rather just focus on a few of the more common (or interesting.) Some of the more pernicious sins (like lies) can cause people to lose executive control over time. Executive function refers to one’s ability to control themselves, discipline themselves, their thoughts and actions and so forth. A normal person can choose whether or not to lie on a given occasion. A pathological liar (a mythomaniac who engages in an activity called morbid lying) has crossed a threshold which means he can no longer choose to be truthful. In fact, he may not know what the truth actually is!

ROBOTICS AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Alarms are increasingly being raised about robots and AI. I have written about these topics elsewhere on this website. Basically, the technology is neither “good” nor “bad,” but how it functions is a measure of the programming. For example, a website may be used to provide useful information that encourages, edifies and informs people. Another website may contain hateful conspiracy theories or revenge porn. Similarly, one person uses their car to drive a sick person to the local emergency department and another uses their car as a weapon to murder and maim participants at a peaceful demonstration. The car, itself, is neutral in terms of morality. But as technology advances, people imprint their own persona and whims, even as Pygmalion did to his creation eons ago. Here is an example:

In a new twist to seances and spiritism, artificial intelligence is being misappropriated by an increasing number of people who wish to “talk” to their to their “dead” friends and relatives. Using deep fake images of the deceased based of actual photos and videos submitted by family and friends as well as available voice patterns, plus other personal information, people can communicate on their computers with those who have gone on. A person may ask questions of the shade that appears on the screen and the “spirit” will respond, sometimes in unexpected ways. For example, I receive a daily technology report in my inbox and a recent edition described this activity. In this instance, parents asked the digital representation of their dead daughter to describe her surroundings. “She” did. When the descriptions of her environment seemed unduly macabre, they asked their “daughter” if she knew where she was. “I am in hell,” she screamed to the horror of her parents. These parents are spiritually lost and a deep fake ghost will not show them the way out of the maze. But even as I did, they can find their way if they respond to God’s leadings as expressed in Scripture and to them, personally in that hour of horror and need.

Deuteronomy 18:10-13 says:

Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft,  or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead.  Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you.  You must be blameless before the Lord your God.”

No, there is no mention of AI or deep fake images, NVIDIA chips or computer screens in this Old Testament passage. But do you really think that the verses don’t apply in this situation? The Eighth Commandment says we should not steal. That means we should not snatch twentieth first century AD Gucci Marmont shoulder bags as well as running off with sixteenth century BC goats.

Believe it or not, unbelief, itself is a sin. Protestant reformer Martin Luther once said that a person estranged from God cannot even eat without sinning, because he does it unthankfully. Sin is a corrosive process, like rust. Over time, rust can weaken iron support beams at sports stadiums and this can lead to collapse. Think of the beams as a person’s faith. Sin may cause a person of faith to eventually “lose” their faith, either because of scandals they see in the church, hypocrisy, betrayal and so on. This corrosion–if unchecked–can weaken a person’s faith to the point that they no longer believe in God’s promises, the diety of Christ, even in God, Himself. The process is very pernicious and insidious.

When one person abandon’s God while another person no longer searches for Him, they are both spiritually lost. It is like the blind leading the blind, and they will never be able to navigate through the maze. So, the steps to counter being spiritually lost are similar to those of being physically lost. First, you want to take a calm inventory of your circumstances. This is sort of like taking your spiritual temperature.

Next, you want a fixed point of reference. Where is North? There is a famous quote from a play by Shakespeare where Julius Caesar says:

But I am constant as the Northern Star,
Of whose true fixed and resting quality
There is no fellow in the firmament.”

julius Caesar, Act III, Scene i,

God is as constant as the Northern Star (Polaris.) While other stars and their constellations circle Polaris, while planets travel around the ecliptic, while meteors streak across the heavens and comets come and go, only Polaris does not move.

God is constant in His love and mercy. He’s available to us 24/7. In Psalm 46:1, David assures us “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” This means you don’t have to wait until Christmas or Easter to approach God. Or Sunday. You can wake up from a troubling dream at 3:35 a.m. and He’s there and ready to listen to whatever you have to say.

When my late wife’s illnesses began, my wife, our family and friends asked God to give her more time. As her heath issues started to advance (heart failure > cancer > kidney failure > pulmonary hypertension) I began to doubt the fundamental goodness of God. How could He let her suffer so? But then I understood that all God had done is given us exactly what we (and she) asked for . . . more time. The additional three or four years to her life gave her kidneys the opportunity wear out, and time for subsequent episodes of cancer to develop (requiring more surgery.) I finally understood in the blink of an eye (Augenblick) that God was constant in His love even as events were changing whether for the good or bad, and occasionally at warp speed. God doesn’t move the goal posts. We cannot expect to live forever in this world. But we can expect Him to forgive us and embrace us if we repent of our sins and messed up lifestyle.

We have God’s Word (the Bible) that serves both as a map and a guide to survival. It’s not just a story book. It’s a user’s manual. As long as we trust the Bible, we should be okay. We also need to be careful who we ask for advice. I’ve watched my students “help” other students in the class. One student may have absolutely no clue when an assignment is due, or how many sources need to be consulted on an assignment, but they are not shy offering assistance to other students about the very same areas they are confused about. Once, I became so frustrated as they worked on a written assignment that I announced to the class: “Don’t write a lot if you don’t know the answer.” In life, people will try to offer you spiritual advice even when they don’t have a clue, themselves. Trust your instincts.

Today in America, there seems to be a certain “herd mentality.” Everyone wants to be a spiritual warrior or a prayer warrior. What does that mean, exactly? Do you earn a merit badge like scouts do? In what specific battles have your fought? Strangely, I’ve never heard anyone in over half of a century of Christianity say they wanted to be a “suffering servant.” Or, any kind of servant. Take heed: Sometimes less is more.

When you are spiritually lost, you can be found. As long as there is breath in your lungs it is not too late.

---

FOOTNOTE

¹In no way am I offering medical advice here. You should do your own research on this topic.