DENALI
(MARY E. ADAMS)
The other day I looked out my window at the mountains They surround my little "world" on three sides, south, east and north. On the west is the inlet.
One of the reasons we Alaskans love our state is because of these great mountains and their beauty. On a clear day we can even get a good view of the highest mountain in North America...Mt. McKinley, or "Denali" as the Indians called it ...which means "the high one".
What does one do with a mountain? Other than looking at it as a magnificent view, one can attempt to climb it, mine its hidden treasures, ski its slopes, or preserve the view in paintings and pictures.
All in all, we enjoy these massive giants and often stand in awe at their towering peaks. But mountains represent far more. They emerge on our landscape because of the tremendous pressures underneath as Teutonic plates collide and vie for room. They are the result of earth's restless upheavals.
Once, during a time of weeping before the Lord, I went into a vision. I was standing on my feet, looking down at the Grand Canyon. It too was the result of earth's ever-changing and restless quest. Thousands of feet below me lay a river bed that had once felt itself gouged and broken apart as incalculable forces tore apart the landscape. I said to myself, "I feel just like that...gouged and broken apart".
Just then I heard a voice that said, "Yes, but think of the millions of people who come to this place to admire its beauty and give Me praise at what I have done".
This jarred my moment of self-pity. Had I ever thought that the trials and disappointments of life could be looked at as forces shaping us into a thing of beauty? That without them, we would have no victories to emerge triumphantly...no testimonies for the world to hear.
From that time, I began to look at life differently...from His perspective.
"All things work together for good.." could not have been a very comforting scripture when facing loss of loved ones, battles with cancer, struggles and disappointment. Yet I realized I was looking at my mountains and valleys as representing formidable barriers and hardships, testimonies to failures and struggles, when all along, God was taking my barren land and creating a masterpiece of beauty.
Only when I stood to see it in His eyes could I understand and come to appreciate the reasons for it all. I know now that there is a restless planet in all of us, constantly being shaped by an unseen hand. And those peaks that reach for the sun...the highest ones, are there because they did not give up and slide beneath earth's crust, but fought for that position and won. They are the "Denali's" we paint on the canvas of our lives.
We must choose to know God in such a way that we accept and even embrace trials and tribulation...not as His reflecting His unconcern and abandonment, but as part of a glorious plan to shape and mold us and let us rise to the heights for His glory. For it is also inside these massive mountains that gems of diamonds, rubies, gold and silver are formed.
Yesterday a friend sent me a little letter that talked along these lines. The last part of it said this:
"A strong person has faith that he or she is strong enough for the journey. But a man or woman of strength has faith that it is in the journey that they will become strong."
DEAR READER: Thank you for taking the time to read this. If it has ministered hope, encouragement or insight to you in any way, would you please take the time to send Mary Adams a quick E-mail at meamin@mtaonline.net and share the blessing with her? She would love to hear from you!
Also, if you would like to be reconciled to God today, please click here to learn how you can do that.
If this testimony has touched you in some special way, would you please share it with us? Email us at: ptoffice@precious-testimonies.com
Are you at peace with God? If not, you can be. Do you know what awaits you when you die? You can have the assurance from God that heaven will be your home, if you would like to be certain. You can even have that assurance RIGHT NOW! Either Jesus Christ died for your sins, or He didn't (He did!). Are you prepared to stand before God on the Judgment Day and tell Him that you didn't need the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the Cross to have your sins forgiven and get in right-standing with God? We plead with you...please don't make such a tragic mistake.
To get to know God, to be at peace with God, to have your sins forgiven, to make certain heaven will be your home for eternity, to make certain that you are in right-standing with God right now ... please click here to help you understand the importance of being reconciled to God. What you do about being reconciled to God will determine where you will spend eternity, precious one. Your decision to be reconciled to God is the most important decision you'll ever make in this life, because in Christ, it is impossible to put a value on the worth of your soul in light of eternity.
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Remember: All that we do in this life comes back to our God-given purpose which is to serve and glorify God. The money and assets we accumulate, the fame and power we've attained or seek to attain - all of the things of this nature will one day pass away, but those lives of others we impact for Jesus Christ will last for eternity, and we will be rewarded for the part we helped play by impacting those lives ... for eternity. (Matthew 6:19-21 is our assurance)