Christian husband and dad, former pastor, current Academic Advisor, enjoy camping, carpentry, writing, driving...oh..and LOVE rainy days!
This trip was long overdue. I grew up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula almost as far north as you can get and now live in the middle of the Lower Peninsula. I have crossed the Mackinac Bridge more times than I can count and always looked over the railing […]
The cycle of seasons that we experience here in the Midwest is one of the main reasons I stay. The vigor of summer fades into the varied red, gold, and yellow hues of autumn before the white blanked of winter is pulled up tight under the landscape’s chin. […]
There were parts of the way down that you had to face the rocks as you went down being sure to place your feet in the right places and hold on to the crevices with your hands as you made your way down. There is also a quite impressive sheer cliff wall on one side of the mountain that is often used by climbing clubs for rappelling. I have never been quite that adventurous, though, and the way I usually took down was not really that dangerous since there were plenty of foot falls and hand holds, and while steep it is not like you’re hanging over the edge of a great chasm. The whole descent takes about twenty minutes, maybe a little more if you’re enjoying the view on the way down. I have always preferred the valley floor to the mountain top anyway, and climbing down this particular mountain was always much more fun than taking the stairs to the top or enjoying the view once there. Silver Mountain is surrounded by miles and miles of maple forests reaching as high as they can with their branches upraised creating a cathedral canopy
Each spring, with the thaw of the winter snows, the river would swell and overflow its banks becoming a rushing torrent. It would wind in and out of its ordinary boundaries eventually ignoring the rules all together, carving out new paths and leaving flotsam and jetsam strewn along the new banks and dammed up against age old trees. It was a wild and rushing raging river that was amazing to watch yet ominous and dangerous. As spring moved on it would slowly subside and resume its lazy path in and out, up and around the banks it was bound to…
The storms of life can often make us cower and hide, cover our eyes and plug our ears. We don’t want to see what’s going on and we don’t want to hear it. Hiding feels safe and not knowing helps ease the pain. But if we do not see with our eyes and listen with our heart we will never learn the lesson that the storm often brings and will be ill equipped when the hurricanes come…and they will come. This I know – nothing comes our way unless it has gone through the hands of God first and he does not send anything our way unless he also provides a way to make it through…
Even in the darkest times when we think things will never change and the skies will never clear, if we look we will see the hand of God working all things out for our good. The mountain may not move and the ocean we are drowning in may swirl even faster, but if we look and listen we may be able to see him in the little things…the things we would likely take for granted if we were not in such a stressful time. Small pieces of the larger puzzle falling into place as we move through: the rain through the night and rumble of thunder letting you know he is there; the morning rainbows thrown across the dark western horizon; the “love u” text from the one I share this life with; the especially satisfying Caramel Macchiato…
I have heard over the years that we should “dream big dreams” and “believe for great things”. I have heard people say that we ought to claim things that are not as though they are and in doing so we give God the opportunity to perform miracles. In essence, if we set a huge goal that we could never possibly attain, then it obligates God to act. I don’t think this is what the Bible is talking about. God is far from obligated to do anything more than He already has on our behalf…He has already done, provided, given, and sacrificed everything for us. I don’t believe that the Good Lord would have us sit back and shout out wants, desires, and demands while He does the heavy lifting…that cross was heavy enough…
The thief on the cross did not get baptized, either in water or the Holy Spirit and he didn’t go through a series of classes to be included among the chosen few who were members of the congregation. He didn’t even say, “I’m a sinner, please save me”. All he said was, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom,” and Jesus’ response was, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.” Nothing more than that. Jesus wasn’t looking at the criminal hanging on the cross, ragged and bloodied and filthy; he was looking the seed of faith in the heart of a lost soul. All too often churches, and Christians in general, focus more on the outward appearance and position of people in their midst rather than at the heart of a sinner in need of mercy and grace. We are all sinners and we all need Jesus. It’s that simple….
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