After church today I looked at the sorry state of my yard and made an afternoon of mowing, weeding, and trimming. I got out the stepladder to take care of my topiaries at the front stoop. I checked to be sure I was on solid ground but just as I stepped up and opened the shears the stepladder sunk in and I went tumbling. The blade smashed into my neck. As I got up off the ground I said thank you, Jesus, I did not behead myself! Of course I also laughed because I had just been thinking about how I needed to write my last blog about the miracle of divine intervention and preservation in anticipation of my global mission. I was considering all these potentially hazardous to my health scenarios.
Last fall I went on a hike in the mountains with my best friend. At the start of our journey we arrived at a fork in the path, we quickly considered the two options before us…very strenuous rocky summit or meandering path to a valley below. Needless to say we took the trail ascending a mountain. The description on the sign was an understatement as much of the way up we were clinging to cables and climbing up ladders attached to the sheer rock facing of a mountain at 6,000 feet. This was challenging but exhilarating. However, what goes up must come down and that’s when the following scripture was made very real to me. For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways. In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone. Psalm 91:11-12 While jumping from a boulder I hyperextended my ankle, I could feel ligaments stretching, tearing, and snapping! I was in pain and whimpered while thinking about the bear den we just passed, a search party coming to find me after a night spent in the wild and the helicopter rescue it would take to get me off that mountain. I sat, prayed, and then minimized this whole experience to my friend so that we could keep going. Miraculously I was perfectly fine to keep scrambling over rocks and jumping off cables until we made our way all the way down the mountain.
A year ago I went canoeing with a friend; it was a trial of an experience. She had never paddled before and I was having difficulty leading our little expedition. Explaining how to do it while simultaneously trying to remember how to do it was making for much entertainment on the river. Just as we got into a groove and started to make some real progress we had to turn around and head upstream. The river had a strong current so this was exhausting work; if we let up we floated back down the river. My girlfriend asked if we could stop at some branches where she could rest her arms, but just as we made our way under the thicket of branches she realized it was unnerving to have branches with spiders in her face. She leaned back and rolled to one side, the branch she was holding swung into my face and sent me in the same direction as she had rolled thus tipping the canoe over. All of our things went into the black murky water. We fetched up everything we could see, turned the boat over and assessed what was missing. The most important item, my bag with the key to the car was all that wasn’t accounted for. I saw it down the river and took off swimming, other boaters had a look of horror on their faces. I got to it but then realized I’d have to be an Olympic swimmer to go upstream. I went over to the edge and partly swam, partly dragged myself forward by pushing off the mucky bottom when it wasn’t so deep to do so. When I made it back a very nice couple stopped to help us, they said you know there are lots of gators in this river. Thank you, Jesus, I was not eaten!
Another river debacle was a whitewater rafting trip on the Nantahala. Myself and two others were quite brave as we made our way along the raging river, over small waterfalls, and around rocks. Most of the way down we did quite well! Then we approached a rock ledge, my friend and I fell into the churning fifty degree water. The rapids sent me head over feet and the shock of the water temperature had a dizzying effect. As I was being turned around in the water it was amazing I didn’t drown, get smashed to pieces on the rocks or be separated from the boat. My friend and I both survived the ordeal by God’s grace.
There are many adventurers who can go on hikes, take out the canoe and even go whitewater rafting, as well as ordinary, everyday people who just need to trim a bush all without death defying situations. I surmise to think that there must really be a calling on my life for the Kingdom of God to have there be such spiritual warfare taking me to the brink and I bypass it each time! Yes, I live fearlessly and there is risk involved with that but I am also ever presently aware of the opposing enemy to God and know that anyone who is for God is subject to the wrath of the other side. I claim over my life the victory of Jesus who having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. Colossians 2:15
