Getting down the mountain.....

I am not sure when it started, but at some point in my life I developed an extreme fear of heights. My Dad has the same struggle, so I sometimes wonder if perhaps it is hereditary? Hmm, not sure but would be interesting to research that. I remember one of my first snow ski trip experiences with my church youth group when I was in 8th grade I think. That was actually my second ski trip, so I had some experience after my first ski trip, and surprisingly, getting back on the slopes after a year wasn’t bad and the skill came back to me pretty quick. I loved it, and we would enjoy going annually for Spring Break with our youth group at UHBC in Springfield, Missouri. Awesome memories! My 8th grade year trip, I was bound and determined like many in our group, to tackle one black diamond slope. For those of you who have not been snow skiing before, that is the highest or nearly highest level difficulty slope you can take on. It is extremely steep, to the point I found myself feeling as if I could topple off the mountain into mid-air and well, die. There I stood, at the top of that slope I fully intended to conquer, and I was gulping down the fear, felt my heart beating in my chest quite loudly in my ears. And for whatever reason, my youth pastor took a real interest in guiding, coaching me down that slope. While everyone else in our group had headed down the slope, there I was, slowly inching my way down that steep slope, making the widest turns I could and at times sitting to take a little break and gauge how much further I must go. It was agonizing and terrifying, absolutely exhausting and I nearly lost it a couple times. But Todd stayed with me and encouraged me without ceasing, telling me I could do this, I was not going to slide down the majority of it on my backside, and he coaxed me into staying up on those ski’s and slowly but surely I did make it down that slope. I did it. I actually did it, and it is safe to say that was one of the most triumphant moments of my life that day. I had conquered my fear, and I was so thankful to have someone willing to stay by my side and coach me through it and not give up, not give in to my fear. I learned that day, there was no easy way out, there was no going around this, and that I had to face it and push through it to get down that mountain. Oh, goodness, what a life lesson this is for so many of us, right? How many times have we had to face something terrifying, seemingly insurmountable in our lives? How many times have we stopped and immediately wondered, “How do I get out of this?”

How amazing it is to consider that in our most vulnerable moments in life, God does His best work. We are most certainly going to face hardship, struggle, and even defeat in this life. But because of Christ, we are able to overcome. Defeat is temporary, it is not eternal. I have found in some of the most difficult circumstances of my life, that He is enough. Every single time. He is enough. There is always help and hope in the One who created me, purposed me, forgives me, restores me and delights in me! I am painfully aware as I look back at my life and the experiences I have had, things could have gone a completely different direction if I had not chosen to fully release my life to the hands of my Father God. It is a choice, a choice I made years ago, and a choice you can make all the same. There is a Savior, who loves you and cares for you on a level far deeper than anything you’ve experienced before. Let Him in. I promise you will be so glad you did. He is going to guide you and coach you better than anyone on this earth can, I guarantee it. So take that mountain, and conquer it. God is going to help you overcome it, I believe it!

2 Corinthians 12:9 “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” (NLT)