Drive By

Pre-view:  For the next several weeks I will be writing a series of articles called, “Along the Way”.  These are based on a recent trip to the Rocky Mountain National Park near Estes Park, Colorado.

Drive By

The trip began with a ride on American Airlines destine for the Denver International Airport.  If you have ever been to Denver International you know that it is located in the middle of nowhere.  As a matter of fact in planning the airport they went to “nowhere” and search for the exact geographical center and amazingly enough they found it and it was there they decided to build a state of the art, cutting edge airport.  It is the only place in Colorado that looks worse than Lubbock, Texas.  Needless to say, we were eager to drive to the mountains.

As we drove into the valley where Estes Park is located we were taken in by the beauty of the surrounding mountains and the town of Estes Park.  We stayed in a cabin just on the out skirts of the town.  If we had stayed in the cabin all week and enjoyed the view from there it would have been a wonderful week.  As nice as the cabin was it was not what we had come to see.  We had come to see the mountains.

On our first day we got in the car and headed to the Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP).  Upon entering the park you have to stop and pay a fee for entering.  The fee is $20 which is good for seven days.  At the time we did not know how many days we would drive into the park, but it seemed like a bargain to me to be able to see the amazing Rocky Mountains.  We decided to drive our car to the top of the pass.  Along the way they have places to park your car so you can get out viewing all the surrounding beauty.  We stopped at every opportunity to look out over the horizon and the valley below to see all that God had created in that place.  As we drove higher the scenic view got more and more magnificent.  The Pine trees and Aspens were just amazing.  I stood in awe of the mountain peaks off in the distance. The view and the altitude literally took my breath away. 

When we got the top of the pass we decided to venture on to the other side of the mountain to a place called Grand Lake.  What a journey!  Every turn and curve revealed another amazing view of the RMNP.  The trees, rocks, streams, and lakes were all magnificent.  It was well worth the $20 for the privilege to enter the park.

On the way back across the pass a thunderstorm rolled in.  I have never experienced thunder and lightning at 10,000 feet.  The thunder really gets your attention. It was as if the voice of God was saying, “Listen to me!” in a very deep, loud voice.  There is nothing like driving in the mountains during a thunderstorm.  To have a bird’s eye view of the lightning is a sight you will always remember. 

As amazing as our drive across the mountain and back was, it was not what we had come to the Rocky Mountain National Park to do.  We had not come to RMNP to simply see the mountain.  We had come to hike on the mountain and be in and among nature and God’s creation.  You see, in order to truly experience the mountain you have to go to the mountain and walk among the trees and walk beside the streams and put your feet in the cold clear Rocky Mountain water.  From the highway you don’t see the flowers and the birds and chipmunks.  From the highway you don’t see the deer and moose and ram.  From the highway you can get a big picture, but it’s not the same as being on the mountain and among the beauty of God’s creation.

Some Christians I know are only experiencing God from a distance.  They attend a church on Sunday morning.  They sing the songs and listen to the prayers and scripture.  They join in the Lord’s Supper with other believers.  When the worship service is over they go home and live their life for a week and then they come back the next Sunday and do it all over again. 

Can I tell you something?  That is not the way God planned for you to experience the Christian life.  He calls you and me to get off the highway and go the mountain so you and I can experience all he has planned and created.  Discipleship is not something you experience off in the distance.  Discipleship requires following the path that Jesus walked so closely that the dust from his sandals falls on your feet.  Jesus walked among the people.  He touched them, held them, cried with them and laughed with them.  He feed them bread and gave them water.  He was the bread of life and living water.  Jesus came to touch and change people’s lives forever.  Following Jesus cannot be done from a distance.

So my friends get out of the car or off the pew and go to the mountain.  God has an amazing adventure in store for you there.  You just don’t know what the blessings will be as you go “Along the Way”.