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A Lesson From the Trail A few years ago I was watching a TV show about mountaineering. On the show they demonstrated a technique used by mountain climbers for walking up long, steep assents while conserving as much energy as possible. The technique is called the "rest step". High altitude climbers will often be climbing for 12-24 hours at a stretch in order to make it to the summit of the mountain and then return to camp. The climbers must set a very deliberate and even pace in order to be able to spend this many hours climbing. At the same time stopping to rest is not a very good option due to the extreme frigid temperature they face. A non moving climber is a cold climber. The rest step is one of the tools they use to conserve energy, keep an even pace and accomplish the daunting task of climbing to the top of the mountain. Basically the way the rest step works is when the climber brings his foot forward to step forward they lean slightly back so their weight is resting on the skeletal structure of there leg and not on the muscles. When the foot if planted forward they hesitate or rest for a second or two before moving the other foot forward. This allows them to rest between every single step rather than charging right up the mountain but having to stop to rest. I was very intrigued by the technique but assumed that, "This wouldn't apply to my hiking style. These guys are climbing K2, Everest and McKinley. I hike in OHIO". The next time I was in the hills of southern Ohio, standing at the base of a 400', 30 degree hill I decided to try the rest step. I felt silly doing it at first but by the time I was half way up the hill I was a believer in the rest step! I realized that not only did I NOT over heat, I did NOT have to stop half way up the hill, I did NOT get out of breath, I did NOT have to stop for 15 minutes at the top but it actually felt good to speed back up to my regular pace once I reached the top. Cool! I love finding techniques that I can apply to my hikes and have them work so well. I love it even more when I can find techniques that I can apply to and use in my every day life. I have found that, just as the rest step helps climbers power to the top of Mt.Everest, my personal relationship with me Creator helps me reach the summits of the mountains I face in my every day life. And while I may have thought in the past that Jesus didn't apply to my life, I found that just like the rest step He can be applied to every hill in my life, big or small. Just as the rest step helps me set an even pace on hills, my personal relationship with Jesus Christ helps me set a perfect cadence for the overall climb that is my life. Please understand that I am not talking about "religion". I'm not speaking about the preacher on TV in the $1,000 suit begging for your money, or a building you go to on Sunday morning, or a person shaking their finger in your face for something you did in your past. I'm talking about a personal relationship with a personal savior. I don't know if you believe there is a God or that Jesus is who He said He was. I would simply ask this, "If you do believe there is a supreme being of some kind do you think this being is supreme enough to hear us if we asked if they are real, and if they are supreme wouldn't they let us know?" And if you do not believe there is a supreme being I'd ask this, "Would it feel more foolish to pray and ask questions of a God that you think doesn't exist or is it more foolish to have never asked the question of a God that MAY exist?" If we set aside our own expectations of what WE want God to be and seek the answers from HIM instead of each other or ourselves, He will reveal Himself to us. It may not come in the form of a burning bush or a loud voice from the sky but He will show Himself to us if we look and listen. The best way for God to reveal Himself to us is through the bible. You may not believe in the bible's validity but if you pray for answers and then read some of the bible at least objectively you WILL find answers to your questions. Weather you believe it, deny it, love it, hate it, embrace it, or scorn it, I would at least encourage you never stop questioning it and seeking it. If there is but one absolute answer to life there should be no fear in the question being asked. And if there is an absolute, eternal answer isn't it worth asking the question? |
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