The God on the Mountain

Dave Loggins has been begging me for years to do it. Before him, there was John Denver singing of his beloved Rocky Mountains. Add Trisha Yearwood singing about the song remembering when as she and an old love rolled through them. Lastly, Tim McGraw talked about things on his dad's bucket list that included climbing here. So you see, I really had no choice but to come to Denver, Colorado, see the snowfall, climb those Rockies (ahem, well at least walk on them wink emoticon ), and definitely roll through them with my own love.

Ahh, the mountains! Whether they are the gorgeous ones I just got to experience these last few days or my beloved Blue Ridge Mountains back in North Carolina, there is just something so special about being up high, further away from the crowds, and oh so much closer to God. Jesus Himself took pleasure and found relief in going to the mountain. He told us all about how He'd go there and pray, away from the others, so He could be alone with His Father. He needed to do this. So did I.

Isn't amazing what perspective can do for one? I remember years ago when I was a kid, watching an episode of "Little House on the Prairie." Half Pint had gotten into one of her messes and she recalled her preacher saying something to the effect of "The closer you are to God, the more likely He is to listen to you." Taking it out of context, she ran away to the mountains, thinking if she was up higher to heaven that her prayers would be heard and thus answered differently than if she stayed in her valley. Of course, it all worked out for her, as she soon realized (after all, it was only a sixty minute show wink emoticon ) that it wasn't as much about physical proximity to Christ as it was spiritual closeness to the One Who can answer our tiniest to the most important of our prayers.

As Steve and I make our way back East and get to go through The Great Smoky Mountains, I am sure I will once again be reminded of the power of God to create such beauty for my wandering eyes to behold, surely, but also to reflect on just how amazing He is to make such a creation for the likes of me. In addition, I will be continually humbled that while such wonders exist, the most wondrous of all is that He would allow a wretch such as myself to commune with Him wherever I may be. I don't have to be elevated physically to get to talk to Him: I just have to be mentally alert enough to realize no matter where I am in body, it's my spirit, my soul, that needs to be in tune with His song.

"Go rest high on that mountain," sang Vince Gill. I did. But my work is not yet done. So, until my final hurrah, I will thank God daily for His blessings, His love, His marvelous creations, and continue seeking Him wherever I may wander.