About two weekends ago my best friend and I embarked on an adventure to go on a canoe trip all on our own. We were going to take on the wilderness, ferocious chipmunks and all! We only got lost once, it only took us one try to start a roaring fire- out of a desire for s'mores and spider dogs, not out of necessity, we never flipped our canoe, only got burnt a little bit and were shown and given many amazing things on our long weekend adventure.
Let me start off by mentioning a small blessing that we received. If you have ever been on a long canoe trip you will join with me in celebrating this blessing!
First, a little context. We launched out at about 11 in the morning, paddling strong towards our destination in the hot summer sun... or so we thought. Turns out a map reader I am not and we headed to the wrong end of the lake, don't ask me how this happened but it did. After portaging into the wrong lake, being told from some nice men that we were in fact at the wrong end of the lake we launched into, and then portaging back to the lake we had started from we realized we had a long paddle ahead of us.
So, we sat down, and ate our delicious bagels with cream cheese and contemplated our situation looking out at the beautiful lake. We laughed and decided that God was just giving us the long canoe trip we really desired to do that weekend and we headed off once again, on a two hour paddle to our actual site.
Well, as we are paddling and our arms and bottoms are feeling pretty sore, I spent some time thinking of a beautiful fire that evening under the stars. When I came to the horrible realization that we would need to saw some firewood for ourselves! I told Jo, she laughed a laugh of "Oh dear..." and then I prayed, "God PLEASE provide us with some firewood so that we can just relax this evening and give our arms a break." I know seems like a shallow prayer right? Trust me, at the time, it felt like a real need!
So we did our next portage, dropped a pool noodle along the way and had a laughing fit trying to pick it up with our canoe over our heads, and then began to paddle happily to our site with Jo singing in the front "Just around the river bend!" and paddling with a lot of grace but not a lot of power. Well, we got to our spot climbed out of the canoe and started to unload, on my second trip I looked up and what did I see? Yes! Glorious, wonderful stack of firewood! I shouted out, "Jo! We have wood!! Praise God!" And we smiled, and did a little dance and sighed.
Wow, that story took longer to tell than I thought, I could possibly write a book about that weekend. When Jo and I go somewhere together, especially the wilderness, stories are bound to accumulate.
Now for my real reason for writing, the waterfall. A friend of mine was staying on the same lake and told us that we should take a trip to the waterfall and since it was right off the portage that was a "hop and a skip" from our campsite we decided we could not leave with out seeing it.
It was truly spectacular, there's something about a waterfall that always gets me, especially when you can climb to the top and look over the edge. The water droplets jumping from the surging stream of water like tiny clear, perfect crystal balls. The sound of the rushing water, pouring over the rocks and crashing into the water and rocks below. The beautiful green moss and trees surrounding this beautiful oasis, and it truly was an oasis as rain has been scarce this summer.
I had been wanting to write about this waterfall but could not think of just what I wanted to say. Just this morning as I was sitting writing to God about the fact that I really wanted to write about the waterfall but was unsure of what He wanted me to say, it hit me. So, after a long ramble, here it is.
The first phrase that came to me when I was thinking of this waterfall was:
Let me start off by mentioning a small blessing that we received. If you have ever been on a long canoe trip you will join with me in celebrating this blessing!
First, a little context. We launched out at about 11 in the morning, paddling strong towards our destination in the hot summer sun... or so we thought. Turns out a map reader I am not and we headed to the wrong end of the lake, don't ask me how this happened but it did. After portaging into the wrong lake, being told from some nice men that we were in fact at the wrong end of the lake we launched into, and then portaging back to the lake we had started from we realized we had a long paddle ahead of us.
So, we sat down, and ate our delicious bagels with cream cheese and contemplated our situation looking out at the beautiful lake. We laughed and decided that God was just giving us the long canoe trip we really desired to do that weekend and we headed off once again, on a two hour paddle to our actual site.
Well, as we are paddling and our arms and bottoms are feeling pretty sore, I spent some time thinking of a beautiful fire that evening under the stars. When I came to the horrible realization that we would need to saw some firewood for ourselves! I told Jo, she laughed a laugh of "Oh dear..." and then I prayed, "God PLEASE provide us with some firewood so that we can just relax this evening and give our arms a break." I know seems like a shallow prayer right? Trust me, at the time, it felt like a real need!
So we did our next portage, dropped a pool noodle along the way and had a laughing fit trying to pick it up with our canoe over our heads, and then began to paddle happily to our site with Jo singing in the front "Just around the river bend!" and paddling with a lot of grace but not a lot of power. Well, we got to our spot climbed out of the canoe and started to unload, on my second trip I looked up and what did I see? Yes! Glorious, wonderful stack of firewood! I shouted out, "Jo! We have wood!! Praise God!" And we smiled, and did a little dance and sighed.
Wow, that story took longer to tell than I thought, I could possibly write a book about that weekend. When Jo and I go somewhere together, especially the wilderness, stories are bound to accumulate.
Now for my real reason for writing, the waterfall. A friend of mine was staying on the same lake and told us that we should take a trip to the waterfall and since it was right off the portage that was a "hop and a skip" from our campsite we decided we could not leave with out seeing it.
It was truly spectacular, there's something about a waterfall that always gets me, especially when you can climb to the top and look over the edge. The water droplets jumping from the surging stream of water like tiny clear, perfect crystal balls. The sound of the rushing water, pouring over the rocks and crashing into the water and rocks below. The beautiful green moss and trees surrounding this beautiful oasis, and it truly was an oasis as rain has been scarce this summer.
I had been wanting to write about this waterfall but could not think of just what I wanted to say. Just this morning as I was sitting writing to God about the fact that I really wanted to write about the waterfall but was unsure of what He wanted me to say, it hit me. So, after a long ramble, here it is.
The first phrase that came to me when I was thinking of this waterfall was:
Yet in the midst of drought and famine
here I stand in this surging waterfall...
here I stand in this surging waterfall...
At once this said two things to me considering the current famine in Ethiopia, and other countries in Africa, how blessed am I to have an abundance of water just flowing over this cliff and spraying me in the face? This is water than can be made drinkable and would be a sight of disbelief for probably over half the world's population!
Here I was being blown away by the beauty of this waterfall where lush green tress and wet soil surrounded me, yet if I were just to walk seven feet up a steep cliff I would hit dead grass and parched soil. All of a sudden the imagery washed over me, is this not a representation of us in this world? God has given us ever-flowing and powerful love, forgiveness and mercy that makes our souls lush, alive and full. Just steps away from us is someone who is thirsty and dying, searching for something more...yearning for something more.
But they are not the only one's yearning, God is yearning for them too. Jeremiah 31: 20 talks about God's response to Ephraim after it has cried out. Ephraim is one of the major tribes of the northern kingdom, and had fallen into a lot of sin (NIV- Life Application Study Bible). In God's response He is crying out to a people, He has heard a people's cry and he says,
Here I was being blown away by the beauty of this waterfall where lush green tress and wet soil surrounded me, yet if I were just to walk seven feet up a steep cliff I would hit dead grass and parched soil. All of a sudden the imagery washed over me, is this not a representation of us in this world? God has given us ever-flowing and powerful love, forgiveness and mercy that makes our souls lush, alive and full. Just steps away from us is someone who is thirsty and dying, searching for something more...yearning for something more.
But they are not the only one's yearning, God is yearning for them too. Jeremiah 31: 20 talks about God's response to Ephraim after it has cried out. Ephraim is one of the major tribes of the northern kingdom, and had fallen into a lot of sin (NIV- Life Application Study Bible). In God's response He is crying out to a people, He has heard a people's cry and he says,
"Is Ephraim My dear son?
Is he a delightful child?
Indeed as often as I have spoken against
him,
I certainly still remember him,
therefore My heart still yearns for him,
I will surely have mercy on him."
(bold emphasis added by me)
Is he a delightful child?
Indeed as often as I have spoken against
him,
I certainly still remember him,
therefore My heart still yearns for him,
I will surely have mercy on him."
(bold emphasis added by me)
Such a beautiful example of God's ever flowing and crushing mercy. His mercy and love has the ability to carve through the hardest heart because of it's ability to refresh through just the smallest amount lightly touching us and drawing us towards its source.
Those were the thoughts I was given this morning, now that this posting has gone WAY beyond what I planned, I sign off.
Alysha
Those were the thoughts I was given this morning, now that this posting has gone WAY beyond what I planned, I sign off.
Alysha
I didn't know you blogged! This is great. Thanks for sharing. You and Jo are basically one of the most hilarious duos I know. I can just imagine the ridiculous laughs you must have had!
ReplyDeleteTash, anytime you want a laugh I have plenty of moments from that weekend. :)
ReplyDelete