As most of you don’t know, I studied outdoor recreation at Houghton College. Yes, I took classes like rock climbing, canoeing and backpacking, outdoor leadership skills, etc. I know what you are thinking, I got credit for things like crossing the street (although that isn’t true, I did get credit for crossing a river once). I loved the classes I took, and the things I have learned are all very applicable to real life. No, not everyone backpacks, rock climbs or even enjoys the outdoors for that matter. But, the lessons learned from such activities are universal.
I have been on 6 week outdoor trips, I’ve lead backpacking and canoeing adventures, worked at challenge courses, etc.; and in every instance the theory has been the same. The theory behind outdoor recreation is simple, and can be summed up in one word: growth. The way to this growth or change may be simple in theory but in practice it is quite hard (for the instructors and participants alike). In order to grow one must be stressed. You cannot change without stress. Stress forces you to reach down deep (or up to God) and find new strength, new character and new levels of perseverance.
Did you know that one of the first Boy Scout type groups (I want to say it was the boys club of America, but I can’t quite remember…OLT was a long time ago!) was founded because a man was in the navy. A boat was struck, and sunk. The people who survived were the older ones who had grown up with more stress around them? The young ones who were “babied” for a lack of better words are the ones who died. He looked at this and saw the benefits of purposefully putting people in stressful environments. He took city boys and put them in the mountains and in stressful environments that lead to being a stronger and better person.
This theory has been put into practice time after time in every outdoor school or trip. If people always stay within their comfort zone they will not grow. You get them outside of that, and they will. Now, there is something you have to watch out for-pushing that person past the stress point and into the danger zone. The danger zone leads to people taking a very quick, none returnable downward spiral. It is something that can happen in an instant if you are not careful. It can cause the person to break down and loose everything you’ve worked so hard for.
This has gotten me to think about the World Race. This is the same principal being applied, yet instead of reaching an inner strength their goal is for you to reach out to God for all that you need and to reach to your teammate to help in the process. We are constantly moving, everything is always in a constant state of unknown and change…nothing is ever the same (teams and countries can change at the drop of a hat for instance). It is a very stressful environment to be in…I find it hard to find true rest because of that. But God helps us with the rest that we need, he gives us strength when we have no more, etc.
Saying that it is still hard, harder than I could have ever imagined. It makes me wonder how close to the breaking point people are pushed? The WR says brokenness is good, that it leads to the change that we need. It is not a fun place to be in, and yes, it does produce change. Sometimes I wonder what type of change it produces, if it is always good change? We need to get people out of their comfort zones, but we need to be careful about it.
As you all are pushing yourselves, whether you be at home, on the race or on some other grand adventure remember to watch yourself. Push yourself, trust God to give you what you need to grow. Rely on him, but don’t go past that point of no return. You may be stubborn and say “I can do it” or “God will help me through”, but, God gave you a brain so use it! Falling off the mountain on the way to the top might do more harm than if you stop part way up saying “that is enough for now. Yes, I know God is giving me strength and endurance but the best thing for me all around is to stop.” It is a hard thing to admit, but it might be the best for you.
It makes me think of the times I’ve worked at a challenge course. I’ve seen kids who have been terrified of heights and so they are terrified of the high ropes course or climbing wall. We push the kids to go up at least a little (of course, it is challenge by choice so we do not make them), but we encourage them to go further. There are some kids who will go one foot off the wall and that is enough for them. It may seem like a little thing to most of us, only one foot off the ground! But to the kid, it is a huge accomplishment! You see the child beaming with joy! They did something they never thought possible! Other kids go one foot, and then another foot, and soon they are to the top of the climbing wall! These kids each made progress, each achieved growth in their own ways. They cannot be compared because they both at least tried. Perhaps next time the first kids will go two feet off the wall…each time we encourage them to go a little further, being careful not to push too hard.
