Do not be afraid.
“Do not be afraid.” - The most frequent command in the bible.
It’s been an especially dry summer. Normally these cascade trails are a damp, dark brown. This year's drought has taken its toll, and each step on this trail brings up a billowing cloud of dust. It’s day 2 on the 42-mile slog they call the timberland trail around Mt. Hood, and I am wondering to myself why I am always staring at the ground when I hike. A misstep here or there with weight on your back can have consequences, I tell myself and continue to look down at the trail. Here I am in one of the most beautiful places on earth and I am staring at the ground! God has given me a sample of his Glory all around me. Mt. Adams to the north, Mt. Jefferson to the south. Helens, Rainer, and thousands of lesser peaks in every direction. The up-close and personal Mt. Hood is always around the next corner. But don’t trip on that root, watch out for that loose scree. My mind is calculating risk with every step. Wow, I wonder how much we all do this everyday? How much of God have I missed by trying to hold on to my life and the ones I love? All the experiences, interactions, God’s masterpiece everywhere. How weak is my faith? The truth is, God’s providence shines all around us everyday and I am caught staring at the trail.
This past year has been a telling season for me. My dad dies, friends get sick, society is going nuts with rational and irrational fear. Fear abounds everywhere. It has inundated our churches. Christians seem to be frozen in as much fear as everyone else! We are told we can protect ourselves, hold on to our lives if we put some material over our faces. If we stay home and isolate, we can protect our kids. We can overcome this big, scary death thing if we follow our new CDC Gospel.
We are staring at the ground.
When I look up, My Lord is telling a different story. Andrew, you and everyone you love are going to die- just like your dad. Embrace it, live into it, hate it like I hate it, but don’t fear it. See my divine salvation, see how I have overcome death so you have nothing to fear! Paul taunts death in 1
Corinthians 15:55: “Where o Death is your victory, where o Death is your sting.” Thankfully Jesus conquered death and we will share in his resurrection. John tells us that Jesus wept with Mary and Martha, was moved with anger towards Lazarus’ death, and then promptly brought him back to life and overcame it! This is our hope. What a great hope we have!
The sun is going down now. I only have a few miles left on this trail to finish out a 26-mile day. Each step becomes more and more painful. I was in such a rush, I left my group behind, added a few extra miles through a wrong turn, and I didn’t fill up my water bottles at the last river crossing so my mouth is dry. The last few miles include a few thousand feet of elevation on sand or ash or whatever this stuff is, and I am running out of energy, so I grab some dry kool-aid out of my backpack and choke it down. An hour later, Timberline lodge comes into view. Not the glorious photo-finish I was hoping for, but eventually I make it. Rest awaits.
I know when the sun goes down on my life-peace, joy, and rest await. Our lives may not look triumphant through the human eye. Our bodies will no doubt grow feebler as we age, and some of us may limp to the finish. But for those of us whose hope is in the Lord, rest awaits. Isaiah 57:1 reassures us that those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest in death.
Father, turn my eyes towards you. -Amen
Andrew Moore