For those that don't know - Pike's Peak is one of the Fourteeners in Colorado, it's one of the mountains that is over 14,000 feet elevation, it's 14,110 to be exact (well depending on which sign you looked at!) From our hotel in Manitou Springs we had a good view of the still snow covered mountain, actually from anywhere in Manitou you have a good view of it!
Garden of the Gods with Pike's Peak in the background |
Crystal Reservoir - 9,230 ft elevation |
But, let's stop just a minute . . . .it's important to this story that you know that I have a terrible,paralyzing fear of heights and my son Tony does as well. Reflecting back I'm not sure what possessed me to think that I could actually drive up to the summit of this mountain, with it's hairpin turns, drop off edges (one of the stretches is called The Bottomless Pit for goodness sakes!), and altitude that makes it hard to catch your breath (not a good thing when having a panic attack!) Oh yeah - I think it was because I decided it was cheaper to pay the $50 for the carload drive up the mountain, than to pay $40 each for the Cog Train.
Glen Cove Inn Check-point - 11,440 ft |
I'm not sure if the shakiness, knocking knees, and lightheadness were due to the altitude or from the sheer terror of the drive. We spent much longer at the Summit House than we planned on, because we were trying to figure out how in the world I was going to drive down that mountain - even the thought of it made me panic! We, or I should say Eugene and Jason, managed to get a few pictures.
We finally decided that Jason would drive down - he seemed pretty calm about it, though I know he was apprehensive. I sat in the front seat, grabbed on to whatever handles I could find, and squeezed my eyes shut tight! Jason did stop a couple of times on the way down, for pictures, but I think to calm himself too. We made it back to Glen Cove and stopped for a bite to eat and for the brakes to cool off. We also saw that the emergency vehicles had left, but there were Park Ranger trucks around a car and a tarp on the ground. Though no one could tell us, it was obvious that the CPR efforts had failed. We never did see anything on the news about what had happened. I wonder if someone had a heart attack from the altitude or from the fear. It was very sad to see though. After Glen Cove, I took over driving again and we continued our adventure - it was supposed to take about 3 hours and instead was almost 7 hours!
So back to God speaking to me . . .at Life.Church Wichita on Sunday, one of the worship songs was Do It Again by Elevation Worship (I've posted it at the end of the blog - take a listen). It's one of my favorites and always reminds me that God is never going to fail me. But this time when it got to the bridge, it hit me really hard.
I've seen You move, You move the mountains
And I believe, I'll see You do it again
You made a way, where there was no way
And I believe, I'll see You do it again
And I believe, I'll see You do it again
You made a way, where there was no way
And I believe, I'll see You do it again
I had a revelation at that moment - sometimes God doesn't move the mountains that we want Him to. Sometimes He makes a way for us to go UP the mountain. It doesn't mean that God has failed, it means that He wants us to trust Him fully and reach for something higher. He will be with us as we climb that mountain, even in our fear and doubt, He will never fail. God had Moses climb the mountain to hear from Him and be given the Law - Exodus 19:20(NLT) - The Lord came down on the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses climbed the mountain. Jesus went up mountains several times to pray and then after his resurrection He climbed a mountain again - Matthew 17: 1-2 - Six days later Jesus took Peter, and the two brothers, James and John, and led them up a high mountain to be alone. As the men watched, Jesus' appearance was transformed so that his face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as light.
My mountains - my health, my weight, the pain that is constant in so many parts of my body, my depression, my insecurities, my fears - maybe, just maybe, I need to stop asking and waiting for God to move these mountains and start climbing them with Him holding my hand, guiding me, and making the way. It will be scary, but as long as I keep my eyes on Him it will be okay and I'll reach the summit and see what He has for me on the other side.