Lessons learned about staying close to God.
When Stephanie, my daughter, and I went to Utah to hike in the ‘Mighty 5’ National Parks, it was an amazing, exhilarating, exhausting adventure. One I would never give up though I pushed myself and my endurance to the limits while Steph was still boppin’ around like a billy goat.
We usually hiked early in the morning for our large hikes of the day and then in the afternoon we would often set out again to conquer a more minor route the park had to offer. Many times I was not ready for the second quest of the day. Steph, however, is a good and shall I say ‘persistent’ cajoler. I would eventually rise from my hotel room bed and set off with her dreading the hike’s elevation gain (out there you are either climbing up or down, only small bits of level ground), as it seemed like a brutal test of my endurance and determination. And I often whined like a puppy and had to stop. I hate to say it but respite was necessary for me to go on and I’m assuming the whining was necessary too embarrassing as it was!
As a child, Steph was the ‘Trail Whine Queen’ dawdling along and whining the whole time – the whole family suffered it and called her by name. Talk to Steph she has many sad stories of hikes in her childhood and youth. And it is also true that in both eras, hers and mine, it did indeed affect our pace. I say, “So what?!”
Steph tried many tactics on me and we always finished the adventure with me saying that was a great hike! There were beautiful sights to behold and unique things of quiet beauty to simply absorb and I ended with, I’m so glad you made me do it!
Above is a snap of a sight I spied on an afternoon hike and moved on past. I was the crippled leader on the trail at that point but I was thinking of the thriving bright red flower nestled in among the thorns of the cactus plant as I pushed on. I thought in a split second that that is how we should live with Jesus in our lives. With the reminder of his suffering, pain and absolute gift he gave to us so close so that we wouldn’t forget the greatest sacrifice the world has ever known. Yet, we do not have to bear any scars from living so close to the thorns that brought to mind the crowns of thorns thrust about Jesus’ head as a symbol of shame and an act of cruelty.
With that time spent in thought, I had gained a few feet of elevation but I turned abruptly and asked Steph to go back and get a snap of that. I just couldn’t think of letting go of the hard earned elevation I had gained because my body was tapped out and we still had several miles to go on the hike. I simply couldn’t lose that minimal smidge of elevation only to have to turn around and work to gain it again. But my energizer bunny could go back down the trail and snap the shot with no problem. She did while saying, Ohhhhh, there’s a devotion in that for sure!
She was right, but it has taken all this time for the devotion to have its example. How do we live this close to Jesus? How do we stay so close to God that we are there when he offers us important opportunities to say “Yes, God, here I am, I’ll go.” Though the thorns in the picture are fearful looking, they will not harm us for they are now not of man but of God and Jesus as he took the harm so we would not have to bear it. We are beloved whether we deserve it or not? So what to do? We nestle in like that amazing red flower of the desert.
This is what can happen if you remain just that close to the thorns he bore for us. The joy of it is beyond expressing. Here is what I mean.
Over the holiday weekend, I reached out to one of my mom’s dearest friends (my mom had more than one dearest friend) to remind her of the great love my mom had for her in life and what a special friendship exists among our two families. This friend is Jo Ann Miska, aka Dearie of the South. My mother was known as Dearie of the North. They often called each other this and skipped using their given names. It all started as a joke and it stuck.
Jo Ann lived in Ortonville to the south and Mom lived in Goodrich just barely to the north or beyond wherever they were appointed from where they met when we were appointed to Waterford church. That church ended up quickly being a Waterloo for us and the year in that congregation took a great toll on my mom and dad. My mother especially suffered from the parishioners snobbery and their cruelty as their end game was to have us go away and as quickly as possible. Out of this massive turmoil was born an enduring friendship. It saw the Dearies through years of joy and laughter with their families as we grew up and times of great sorrow with each losing a son to cancer, Billy and Stephen, far far too young for either son and leaving gaping holes in each of their lives as mothers and wide craters in the lives of each member of our respective families.
We texted about the nature of their friendship which is a rare thing to find and sustain in this world for as many years as they did. Dearie of the South responded with something beautiful that made me think again of the picture on my camera roll that I wanted to use in a devotion some day. She said, “Meeting your mom all those years ago truly was a thin place of God.” See! Sometimes we are actually that close to God! You know if Dearie of the South and Dearie of the North hadn’t been on their faith games – they could have missed that thin space between us and God.
Oh, he will present other opportunities but why miss even one when something so intensely marvelous might be born to help us and others along our hikes. Dearie of the South knows that God had a definite hand in bringing them together and binding them for life. They each cherished what was God given and nurtured the new life he brought into their world and the worlds of everyone in both of the families. For it was indeed precious!
My mom and Jo Ann Miska were not extra special in the eyes of God – they were and are beloved just as we each are. Such gifts are offered to us as well in life if we only but seize them and nurture God’s life force among us. So….nestle in.
And that’s an Amen!
~Shauna Weil
A devotion provided by the Devotion Ministry of Goodrich UMC
A devotion provided by the Devotion Ministry of Goodrich UMC
An oldie but goldie song accompanies this devotion. You can listen to it from different vantage points; it’s an interesting meditation. Listen as yourself, as your friend, as if Jesus was the friend you had in mind or vice versa and on and on. One comment about the lyrics, no bows needed. You’ll know what I mean.
Here it is from the 70s by Andrew Gold – “Thank You For Being A Friend”.