Walking in His Footsteps

     In my last blog I wrote about my venture into a winter wonderland in Rocky Mountain National Park. I would like to detail my account of going back there to Emerald Lake in June a couple of years later. I had gone out to Colorado Springs on a business trip and decided I would spend a couple of extra days in RMNP by myself.

     I went back up to the trail for Emerald Lake, but this time there was not as much snow. So I hiked all the way to Emerald Lake and the trail ends when you come to the lake. Now understand that there are two rules when hiking. Those rules are to never go alone and never go off trail. I think my Mother must have made those rules for the NPS as one of their other suggestions is that if you get hungry you should eat something. Anyways, I was alone (although there were others on the trail) and I decided since this was such an easy trail that I wanted to go exploring off trail around Emerald Lake. Now the lake sits in a crater like hole surrounded by very steep walls and a water fall on the other side of the lake where the trail does not go. So I started going towards the south side of the lake which is covered by a countless amount of boulders. This gives the off trail hiker a fun challenge but is a sturdy path nonetheless. (Except when one tumbles out beneath your feet)

     Now for the difficult part, there was a large snow bank covering this way around the lake. So imagine a steep wall covered in snow and the only thing at the bottom was a thirty something degree lake with ice still floating on the top. The challenge this offered was not knowing where to place my foot in order to make sure I would not fall into this icy lake. So as I looked for the best place to begin and thought about it for a moment I noticed small footsteps going across this “mini-glacier”.  The obviously smart thing for me to do would be to simply follow in the footsteps of one who has already been before me. So I began placing my boots in the already made footsteps in front of me. I had my hiking stick with me and a loaded back pack on my back. As I hiked half way across this snow bank one step that I took gave out underneath me and gravity began to pull me toward my icy grave. With a heavy backpack on my back and no one around to help me hypothermia would have quickly set in and there is no doubt I would have drowned even if I had not been knocked unconscious by the rocks at the bottom of this embankment.

    Thankfully, by the Grace of God, I was able to stick out my hiking stick and retain my balance catching me from tumbling into the lake. As I paused for a moment to regain my focus I continued on across to the other side where I could enjoy the waterfall and a beautiful vista as well as some more climbing challenges.

Life Lesson-

     In leadership their must be the humility and attitude to follow. Anyone who is in a leadership role must understand that they can learn from others who have gone before them and who have experience in different areas. They must also have the courage and confidence to step out and lead those who follow or else they will never go anywhere.

     As a Christian we are to follow in the footsteps of Christ. As we follow His example he also gives us tools to help us along the way for when we stumble and fall. He gives us His Spirit, Word, and Church. Without these we could not follow Him in the ways we should go and if we don’t rely on these regularly we could fall into a pit of destruction. So often as Christians we want to do things our way, but it is only through submission to Christ that we will have victory and success in our families, jobs, and ministries.

For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. (1Peter 2:21)

No Nativity

 Walking in the dust of the earth

 Working, straining, sweating

 Hunger stirs inside

 He lifts up and comforts

 He educates and inspires

 He gives everything

 It begins to snow

 The feast comes out of the kitchen and the scent fills the house

 The tree sparkles with tinsel and lights

 The presents are laid around its trunk

 The warmth of the fire is only outdone by the warming laughter of children

 He is mocked and beaten

 He is displayed for all to see

 He takes our place and dies

 We eat

 We receive

 We forget

The Pilgrim's Purpose

    In the spring of 1621, after landing at Plymouth the previous year, the Pilgrims were not in good condition. They were living in dirt-covered shelters, there was a severe shortage of food and nearly half of them had died during the winter. They obviously needed help. Two Indians, Squanto -- also known as Ti-squan- tum-- and Samoset, who had been observing the colony for several days, decided to enter the camp and welcome the strangers. The Pilgrims were very surprised to meet two Indians who spoke English.

          Squanto, who probably knew more English than any other Indian in North America at the time, decided to stay with the Pilgrims for the next few months and teach them how to survive in this place. He brought them deer meat and beaver skins. He taught them how to cultivate corn and other new vegetables and how to build Indian-style shelters. He pointed out poisonous plants and showed how plants could be used as medicines. He explained how to dig and cook clams, how to get sap from the maple trees, use fish for fertilizer, and dozens of other skills needed for survival. By the time fall arrived, things were going much better for the Pilgrims, thanks to the providential help they had received. The corn they planted had grown well. There was enough food to last the winter. They were living comfortably in their Indian-style wigwams and had also managed to build one European-style building out of squared logs. This building served as their first church. They were now in better health and they knew more about surviving the new land. They decided to have a Thanksgiving feast to celebrate their good fortune. They had observed Thanksgiving feasts as religious obligations in England for many years before coming to the New World.

          Captain Miles Standish, the leader of the Pilgrims, invited Squanto, Samoset, Massasoit (the leader of the Wampanoags), and their immediate families to join them for a celebration, but they had no idea how large Indian families could be. As the first American Thanksgiving feast was about to begin, the Pilgrims were overwhelmed by the large turnout of ninety relatives that Squanto and Samoset brought with them. The Pilgrims were not prepared to feed this gathering of people – especially when you consider that the celebration was to last three days. Seeing the shortage of food, Massasoit gave orders to his men within the first hour of his arrival to go home and get more food. Five deer, many wild turkeys, fish, beans, squash, cornsoup, corn bread and berries were brought to the feast. Captain Standish sat at one end of a long table and Clan Chief Massasoit sat at the other end.

          For three days the Wampanoags feasted with the Pilgrims. It was a special time of friendship and thanksgiving between two very different groups of people. A peace and friendship agreement was made between Massasoit and Miles Standish giving the Pilgrims the clearing in the forest where an Indian village once stood to build their new town of Plymouth.

Life Lesson-

     Let’s look at the pilgrims and what they did  in coming to America verses those who came after. The pilgrims came to the New World with a purpose which was to seek the Lord and serve Him. When they arrived they brought peace and were greatly blessed by this.  It was later in time that men from Europe came with selfish ambition. Their goal was to gather up as many resources and as much land as possible. The only way to do this, however, was to get rid of the Indians who stood in the way of their goals.

    So what we know from this is that when we put God first and seek His good and the good of others we will abide in His peace and love. We will be provided for, comforted, and protected. When we seek after things for ourselves we will stir up conflict and constantly struggle for the same things that can be given to us freely.

 

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 

Matthew 6:33

Pearl Harbor: The Gateway to Our Crusade

     December 7, 1941 was a date that would live in infamy according to President Roosevelt.  It definitely has done just that, for we have remembered this day every year as it alone entered the United States into the greatest of wars. In my opinion, never has there been in history such a war in which we, the world, joined forces on one side to fight the very real and horrific evil that existed in the Axis countries.

     You can look at Alexander the Great’s conquest of the Mediterranean and Eastern World, or look to the Romans as they conquered North West and Eastern Europe, The Middle east and Mediterranean, Africa and Western Asia. There are the Huns who took a greater geographical region than the aforementioned and the British who conquered areas that span the globe. However, none of these compare to the drama that occurred when very civilized, modern nations descended to the pits of Hell itself. There was nothing that motivated this war except hate and murder. The previous empires’ motives that were mentioned were, even though misguided,  merely to expand their empires by forcing their culture and civilization on the rest of the world. (Which, in most cases, was a technological benefit to the conquered peoples)       

         

     The sacrifices for this pursuit were great. My Grandfather received a purple heart in WWII. He had been captured in Europe and sent to a Nazi prison camp. In the prison camp, due to weather conditions, he had severe frostbite on his feet and lower legs having to have them amputated. Others gave much more than this as they lost their lives, especially during the invasion of the French beaches on D-day.

     Our Crusade against evil continued on against the communist countries where many more human atrocities occurred, under the radar, ranging somewhere between 50-70 million people slaughtered. This is what happens when people believe that the government can solve all problems. As in communism they replace God with the state and in order for their doctrine to work they must eliminate those who do not fit into the system.

      So the question is posed, do we continue to this day, as a nation, to crusade against evil or have we invited this evil in?

    

    

Life Lesson-

      Evil rears its ugly head in many forms, not only in the extreme cases such as war but in more subtle ways. We have families that break up and lives that are destroyed whether by crime or by conflict. We have people in need who are ignored or abandoned.

     This holiday season is a prime place to start in your own personal crusade against evil. Seek to mend broken relationships, look for those who may need a helping hand or an encouraging word. If those soldiers  gave up their appendages and lives for our crusade against evil then can we not give up our pride or  money to help out others. We need to consistently take these stands against evil which will aid in preventing it from spreading and infecting our nation.

If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? (James 2:15-16)

Hiking in a Winter Wonderland

      In early May a few years back I was with a friend in Rocky Mountain National Park. As anyone knows early May in the Rockies can be just like our February here in Indiana. There was a Snow Storm that moved through just a few days prior so the wet white substance saturated the landscape.

      We had gone up to Emerald Lake to take a short scenic hike but as we arrived at the trailhead we noticed that everyone was leaving and wearing snowshoes. This gave us pause as we were about to venture out on this hike in mere hiking boots, but when the wilderness calls I always come running.  So we decided to go out on this trail up towards Emerald Lake and see what we could accomplish. We were able to see breathtaking views along the way as the trail was still somewhat visible through the forest paths.

     We finally made our way through the trees and came upon a large opening. There was no more trail, just hills of snow. So we hiked up a few of these hills keeping a point of origin so that we would not get lost.

     The wind was blowing and the sky was dark and cluttered with grey clouds. It was not snowing at the time but it seemed like it due to all of the snow blowing around us. As we continued in the direction we were heading I stepped in a spot that made me fall  into the snow up to my waste. It  was at that point  I realized we were standing on top of a small lake. (As there are several smaller lakes before you reach Emerald Lake. I have been several times since then in the summer months and it is a great trail although much easier in the warmer weather.) The opening we had went to was open for a very good reason...no trees can grow in the water. So we decided that would be the farthest that we would go as there was really no need to go any further since the trail had disappeared.

     However, the reason we were going in this direction was for the amazing reward we pursued and that was an unforgettable view of Tyndall Glacier that lies between Flattop Mountain and Hallett Peak. As we looked up we could see the wind between the peaks whipping the clouds back and forth as the sun peaked through ever so slightly so that it looked like a small white ball floating in the clouds. As these peaks stood before us with the evergreen trees to our side we were amazed at the sight we beheld. Never have I experienced such an awesome atmosphere that makes even the tropical beaches I have laid on to pale in comparison. Not only was it a Winter Wonderland because of its visual presence, but it was an experience where we had taken a dangerous, rough road and were duly rewarded.

LIFE LESSON-

     Life always offers us options on how to live it. You can always take the easy way or the harder way. Many times people like to take the easy way, but the only problem is that this in not always the right way. Sacrifices are part of life and if you want to enrich the lives of others many times sacrifices will need to be made.

     The Word tells us that if we want the reward of eternal life that we will need to choose between the broad and easy path or the narrow and rugged path. The path is rugged and narrow that leads to Life, because it is lived in submission to Christ. There is no more living for self or doing only what we want. However, let me assure you that though there is sacrifice there is also the greatest reward of all. The Word tells us that when we choose this rugged path of Christ our life now dwells in Him. We have the power and promise of God that He will protect us, comfort us, provide for us, and protract our lives for all eternity.

     “...For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”  Matthew 7:13-14