The Trail Register

 

  'Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. ' Isaiah 40:28 Sometimes I feel weary and weak.  The world is unpredictable, unstable even.  I'm affected, at times discouraged, even afraid.  Yet the Lord is the everlasting God.  He is the beginning and the end.  He stands outside of time.  As my friend Jeff Good likes to say, "God is not wringing His hands."  What seems out of control is not out of His control.  He is the creator of the ends of the earth.  I like to think about the ends of the earth...or at least the faraway places I have been.  He created these places.  They are not far away to my Lord.   'Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side

  Sitting on the porch of our condo in Ocean City early this morning I was curious what geographical area was directly east of me.  Surprisingly it was not Spain which I had expected but the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea.  It occurred to me that one could go directly by boat across the Atlantic into the Mediterranean and straight to Israel.  This led me to wonder how many miles directly from here to Jerusalem? Turns out its 5,834 miles. I felt some kind of connection by water to the place  that Jesus had walked.  It all seemed very near and real to me. Last week I talked with a friend about "truth." Like me, he did not think truth was relative, that something was either true or not true.  When I mentioned the bible, he commented the bible was just stories, implying they were not true.  We talked about the fact that even if something is believed to be true, there has to be an element of faith to accepting that truth.  Driving a car for example involves an element of faith tha

“During the rule of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest assigned service in the regiment of Abijah. His name was Zachariah. His wife was descended from the daughters of Aaron. Her name was Elizabeth. Together they lived honorably before God, careful in keeping to the ways of the commandments and enjoying a clear conscience before God. But they were childless because Elizabeth could never conceive, and now they were quite old." Luke 1:5-7 Disappointment.  It comes in all shapes and sizes.  There is disappointment with others, friends, our spouse, family members, and co-workers. There is disappointment with ourselves for  how our lives have  turned out. Or not turned out.  Sometimes if we're honest,  there is disappointment with God. Zechariah and Elizabeth may have experienced all of these over her inability to conceive and the loss of their youth.  Now, in their old age, disappointment was in the rear view mirror…yet it was always present.  But God sends a mess

"So many others have tried their hand at putting together a story …that took place among us, using reports handed down by the original eyewitnesses who served this Word with their very lives. Since I have investigated all the reports in close detail, starting from the story’s beginning, I decided to write it all out for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can know beyond the shadow of a doubt the reliability of what you were taught."  Luke 1:1-4 We don’t know much about Theophilus but he must have been someone Dr. Luke cared a great deal about.    Luke wanted Theo to know “beyond the shadow of a doubt” the story that was going to change the world.  Or at least change Theo’s life.  Many of us know a Theo.  Many of us have been a Theo, a person in need of something…a story…or the certainty of knowing something to be true.  Perhaps the certainty of knowing that we are known…and loved…and have purpose. In any story, it is always good to start at the beginning. 

High Peaks, ADK, August 2015 In my life, I've gone on hundreds of hikes, mostly with the people I love.  Invariably, at the beginning of each hike, I've signed into a Trail /register, a sort of wilderness ledger recording the comings and goings of hikers. Colin on the Sky Meadows Trail, August 2019 The Trail Register let's those who follow know: -that you were there -where you were headed -special places along the trail others might enjoy -any parts of the trail others should avoid In short, the Trail Register is a brief record of one hiker's journey. Hopefully others who walk this trail will find something helpful. Appalachian Trail, Spring 2016 Mt. Jo, July 2016 Mt. Jo, August, 1992 Sky Meadows Trail, August 2019 Sky Meadows, August 2019 Appalachian Trail, October 2016