We all need to take a moment in the midst of our busy lives to stop, to rest, and to reflect. By sharing my experiences traveling "The Road of Life" it is my hope that you too will find, as I have, a moment of inspiration and perhaps you too will begin to look for the truth found at each step and along every mile of your own journey through life.
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"I wish you could have been there!"
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As I thought about my college days recently a phrase came to mind. "There's one in every crowd." While I cannot for the life of me remember this guys name or picture his face his antics will always be with me especially this one.
His favorite past time was to play spy. There were many occasions when I saw him on campus peering around buildings, leaning his head around a tree, as well as many other antics in many other places and always when I least expected it. I can still picture him in his Humphrey Bogart outfit consisting of overcoat, flipped up collar, and brimmed hat always pulled down just low enough for him to see. My favorite place to see him in this act was in the hallway of the dormitory I lived in. Of all the places he appeared this was the most perfect of all. The hallways of this old wooden bulding were dimly lit and the floors creaked below you with every step you took. It wasn't hard to visualize fog drifting in from the ocean and to hear the piercing sounds of the horns of tug boats. At least that was my creative addition to his search for truth and it fit in very well.
As I was walking through the dorm one evening I came around a corner and noticed a shadowy outline of a man in an overcoat and hat standing at the end of the hallway. I couldn't make out his face in the darkness, but there was no mistaking who it was. I had seen this routine enough that it came as no surprise, but what happened next did come as one. The "spy" now had a new addition to his ensemble. His hands now cradled a button that was wired to a pair of glasses containing a small red bulb in the center. The normally dimly lit hallway was aglow with two blinking red lights. It was hysterical. I wish you could have been there!
I can't help but believe that the words, "I wish you could have been there" were on the mind of King Solomon when he penned these words recorded in the book of Proverbs. "I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw." I believe that he too searched for truth everywhere, in everything, and in every experience in life. He was recognized in his lifetime as being one the wisest men on earth. He continues to be recognized for that today. And while his wisdom was recognized because of his insight I can't help but believe that the real wisdom he had was merely the fact that he chose to look for the truth all around him, an example I too have come to follow in my own special way.
Approximately 60 miles east of Pueblo, Colorado as the crow flies, or in this case as the hawk flies lies the sleepy little town of Crowley, Colorado; population 192 if you count all the animals and insects. I say that because Crowley, Colorado isn't a place you just happen upon. It is so far from anything else that you have to be there intentionally. My purpose for being there every year was to have the local post office stamp my trip log for sentimental reasons as the town bears my last name. So for that reason I am assuming that I am considered an honorary member of the community and part of the 192. Lest I leave you with the idea that there is absolutely no redeeming value for the little place keep this in mind. It is just close enough to catch a panoramic view of the great Rocky Mountains and far enough away so that you don't have to deal with crowds.
I awoke from sleep on night years ago and the phrase, "The View from Crowley" came to mind. While the suddeness of those words came as a surprise their meaning was instantly clear. Just as I'm able to glimpse the heights of the mountains from the town of Crowley I am also able to glimpse the heights of truth and wisdom from wherever I am. Needless to say it was a revolutionizing moment and a great turning point in my life.
All the entries that follow here are my way of sharing with you little glimpses of truth I have discovered from where I am and from my own journey along the road of life. They are also my way of saying this. "I wish you could have been there!'
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"Wisdom cries aloud in the streets"
~ Proverbs 1:20
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It was one of those red-eye flights. You know the kind. It's the one you avoid at all cost and the one the boss "encourages" you to use because of the cost. In my case I was too excited to let a 4:00 a.m. departure discourage me and I'll tell you why. First of all, it wasn't a business trip. Secondly, it was going to be my first trip unaccompanied by a parent or guardian.
We all remember those first experiences in our lives and I would especially remember this one. In hindsight it is clear that this trip fueled the wanderlust that has led to a lifetime of adventures. I can still see in my minds eye the sun coming up over the clouds from an altitude of some 25,000 feet in the air. I can still feel the anxiety I had arriving at the Atlanta airport in the heat of the morning rush hour having to make, of all things and in all places a connecting flight. I also remember that somewhere between Atlanta and Orlando a great transformation took place. Blame it on what we now understand as unsafe levels of carbon monoxide in airplanes or whatever, but the one who was "pumped" transformed into the one who was pooped.
Having set the stage now I want to put you in my shoes. Visualize the Palm Trees lining the driveway at the airport as you anxiously await the cargo van delivering the duffle bag containing all your worldly possessions. Listen to the cab drivers honking and breathe that wonderful ocean air that smells like something no one could forget; dead fish! Are you with me?
Now visualize the cargo van unloading in front of you and the only thing you can think about is a nap. By the way, did I mention that I made an unwise decision before leaving home? Instead of packing a powdered form of laundry detergent as I was advised I planted a little bomb inside my duffle bag containing liquid laundry detergent with a detonator set to go off at an altitude of 25,000 feet in the air. I'm not sure how to describe my reaction as I looked at the huge, sweet smelling, sopping wet green canvas rag that was then attracting every mosquito within a hundred mile radius except to say that I was surprised.
By now you are probably asking what a completely saturated, albeit quite clean duffle bag and contents has to do with anything. If you are interested in the answer please return to your seats, put them in their full and upright position, relax, and prepare for the final descent into truth. As your captain I'm pleased to inform you that the weather at this destination is heavenly!
I was telling someone recently how even a simple event in daily life can be used to teach us something. While that may not seem like anything out of the ordinary it was an event that turned around on me. While I was enlightening someone else I realized a truth about my own life. Like all of us I struggle with juggling too many things. And like many of us my solution has been a concept called compartmentalize. You simply quarantine everything in life to its own space and the only mutual contact these things have is the hands that juggle them. Up to that moment it seemed to work, but all of a sudden I understood that my thinking had a flaw. In reality there are no quarantines. The God who created everything and everyone has designed everything for one purpose which is for us to come to know and have a relationship with him. While that may sound cliche' the truth of the moment brought a incredible sense of peace and freedom.
The words from the book of Proverbs speak a great truth about all of this. "Wisdom cries aloud in the streets." The streets in my life are a little cleaner now, if you catch my drift and I find myself as surprised as I was back all those years in Florida.
God's truth saturates every area of life. Some of you just haven't realized it yet. Are you ever in for a surprise!
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"How Long Oh Lord?" ~ Psalm 13:5
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In 1986 the world lost a great man. Considered to be one of the greatest photographers that have ever lived, Ansel Adams’ mastery of black and white photography elevated it to an art form and his love for the wilderness touched everyone who viewed his prints including me.
The photographs of Ansel Adams fueled a passion in me many years ago to capture the beauty of nature. All the stacks of prints and slides are reminders of the time and expense invested in that passion. I even dreamed of one day becoming a noted, i.e., “rich” nature photographer. Needless to say, that never happened.
One of the books Ansel Adams wrote during his lifetime is devoted to describing the backgrounds to his most famous prints. “Clearing Winter Storm – Yosemite National Park” is one of his most famous prints and was naturally included in this book. Taken during a winter snow storm, the scene centers around the sun breaking up a massive cloud bank and spraying spectacular highlights and shadows over the blanket of snow on the ground and over all the rock formations. It is no doubt that this print garnished so much praise during his life and understandably became a priceless work of art upon his death. And just as remarkable as the print itself is the story of how that photo came to be.
Ansel Adams was in the Yosemite Valley area of California during a massive winter storm when all of a sudden the clouds broke. Prepared by years of dedication, discipline, and training, Ansel Adams grabbed his camera gear, set up quickly, and captured the moment for all time. Within literally moments after triggering the shutter on his camera the storm moved back in and the scene he had captured disappeared.
I don’t remember the name of the other print that made such an impression on me from his book (why I didn’t buy the book instead of just browsing through it at a local bookstore I’ll never know) but its background left as much of an indelible impression on me as the “Clearing Winter Storm.” So you will appreciate what I am about to describe, I need to give you a basic lesson in photography. Photography is the capture of light; Simple enough. What is not simple are the all the variations of the intensities, durations, and colors of light combined with all the endless atmospheric and geographical factors. Well, so much for theory; let’s talk experience.
Bring to mind a sunset or sunrise that you especially remember, how the colors and perhaps even the scenery provided a spectacular and memorable moment. And then just as it was with the winter storm in Yosemite it was suddenly gone. That is something we can all relate to. Now try to relate to this. In order to capture another one of his most famous photographs Ansel Adams sat in one place for two weeks with his camera set on a tripod waiting for all the criteria I’ve mentioned above to be absolutely perfect. I don’t know how many of you can relate to that, but I can honestly say that I cannot!
While I know nothing about the man’s spiritual life, all that he expressed through his prints over the years makes me wonder. With all that he saw and displayed through his art I have to believe that there were things he understood. Whether he realized it or not, he had the answer for at least one question asked by someone I know and I suspect also by most of us. The question is found in the 13th Psalm and reads like this. “How long Oh, Lord?”
All of us have experienced that at one time or another. Perhaps for some it has come to be a way of life. No matter the effort the advancements don’t come, no matter what is put into it the job seems to be a dead end, despite all efforts relationships seem futile. Even if we never physically utter the words our soul cries out, “How long Oh, Lord?”
When Jesus said, “Behold I come quickly” he did not say, “Behold I’m coming in just a short period of time.” When Christ returns the event will be sudden and swift. It will not be an event occurring on a whim, but an event predetermined and planned for through out all of eternity. In the same way, I have come to understand that all the things planned for your lives come together because they are planned and calculated. The question is, will we be ready when that moment comes, prepared by years of dedication, discipline, training, and most of all faith?
“How long, oh Lord?” Do you know what the answer is? The writer of the 13th Psalm did. You can find his response in the 5th verse. “I trust in your unfailing love.”
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