Mountain Climber

This past weekend I went on a mini vacation in Greer, Arizona. Greer is about a four hour drive from Phoenix. While there, I stayed in a cabin and went skiing, hiking, and all in all, had a great time of fellowship and moments with the Lord. On the drive Monday back to Phoenix to the airport I was in complete awe over how beautiful the mountains were and How big God is. I kept thinking about how me and some of my family went and climbed to the top Gobbler's Peak and how the view from the top was completely worth the difficult climb. From there I started thinking about mountains and valleys and how our journey in life will take us through many of each.

I recently walked through a difficult valley. At the beginning of this year the Lord spoke to me and confirmed His word through a few people that I would be entering into a new season. That this year was going to be a year where God birthed new fruit and that I was stepping into a new purpose. That I would be walking out of my valley and onto a mountain. In my mind that meant that I would all of a sudden be placed on the mountain and receive the blessings of this new season. I was wrong. I began to face more difficult things day after day. This isn't to say they haven't been beautiful because they have been. Difficult circumstances, but beautiful revelations and moments with the Lord. But, I still didn't understand why my new year, my new season, wasn't really looking that new. It wasn't until that drive back that I felt the Lord reveal to me why.

When we climbed to the top of Gobbler's Peak it was not easy. There was no trail to the top. Snow and ice covered it. So while you are climbing up you have to be careful because it is slippery. Not all of the rocks that you step on are sturdy and some of them would roll down. Some of the trees that you tried to hold onto to climb up were charred and the branches were weak and would break off. My six year old niece was also climbing with us so there would be times where I would stop because she was having a difficult time and we had to make sure she was ok and that she didn't fall. When we finally reached the top though, the view was absolutely breathtaking. It was worth every difficult step it took to get there. I stood on the top and all I could think about was the glory of God.

We will go through valleys in our lives. They aren't fun. They are hard. And, we will reach a point where we have walked through that valley and we have reached a mountain. God won't just put us on the top of the mountain. We will have to climb it. It won't always be an easy climb either. It will be slippery. It will be difficult. There may even be times when we are climbing that we will have to stop for a moment to help someone else climb. Eventually though, if we don't give up, if we don't turn around, we will reach the top. We may be tired, but we will have made it. The view will be wonderful. It will have been worth it.

You can't stay there forever though. God is always bringing you into new seasons. There are always more things to grow in. There are more moments with the Lord to be had. There will come a time when you have to begin your climb down the mountain. That won't be easy either, you will have to watch your steps. Make sure you don't slip. And, when you reach the bottom, you may have another valley to walk through. But, it won't be the same valley as before. You will be stronger. You will have the revelations of what you learned in the last one as well as everything you learned on your climb up and down the mountain. And, you will have the promise of a new mountain. Of another breathtaking view even more beautiful than the last one.

This morning while reading the word I read Psalm 46. One of my absolute favorite psalms.  

[Psalm 46:5]

  "God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day."

God is with you through every valley and mountain. He is within you. He will help you. You are in the hands of the Creator of the universe. That's a good place to be.