Many Mountains Many Fates

In the spring of 1996 several groups of hardcore mountain climbers began the treacherous yet incredibly enticing climb up the face of Mount Everest in Nepal. They had trained for years, paid tens of thousands of dollars in fees and left their loved ones for months in hopes of reaching the highest point in the world. They paid heavy wages to hardworking Sherpas, who helped them carry their burdensome loads.

On May 11, 1996 those same men who gave everything to get to the top, would have given everything to get to the bottom. On that one fateful night, eight climbers met their doom as a powerful storm rolled in and killed them one by one. Their bodies still litter the trails, along with seven other climbers who died that same climbing season.

I wonder how many of those men, given a choice, if a choice were possible, would never have begun to train for that disastrous hike up Mt. Everest. I wonder if they would have worked overtime to obtain the extra cash needed to gain access to their rocky grave. I wonder how many men would give anything to have never started down the road that led to their demise. I wonder…I wonder how many men rue the day they decided to go contrary to the tug of the Holy Spirit telling them to go no further, to take a left turn instead of a right, to look the other way as their glance turned into a stare which blossomed into an affair which resulted in misery. I wonder how many men would give it all back for a second chance at that first one chance.

My father once quipped after nearly losing his life on a remote mountain in Nevada, “One never truly conquers a mountain, it is just that sometimes it lets you see its beauty and sometimes…sometimes it lets you live”. How many men have climbed a mountain of lust and sin, believing they escaped its punishment due to their shrewdness and intelligence, only to revisit the mountain, but this time the mountain did not let them return. We are curious creatures scurrying about seeking the next crag despite the penalty that whistles in the wind from high atop its jagged peaks. Be cautious of the pull of the magnificent, for in her bosom awaits freezing death and horrors untold that cannot be grasped this side of anguish. "The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Mth. 7:13-14).

Someone Dial 911!

Dissect a crowd’s reaction at any emergency situation and you will observe at least six types of people: Victims; Helpers; Runners; Strollers; Gawkers; and the Defiant. Type one victims have no clue they are in serious trouble. Police call them ‘walking victims’, they are about to be a victim, they are simply unaware at the moment out of ignorance or willful disregard for the obvious; “I need help?” Type two victims do not require anyone to tell them that things are bad and getting worse. They have a deep comprehension of the desperation of their situation because they are physically and emotionally involved; “I need help!” Helpers, are typically emergency personnel, they see the need and rise to the occasion to render first aid to the victim but also to protect others from similar harm; “I will help”. Runners are those who hear the helpers telling them, “Get back!” They recognize the problem, observe its continued threat, and adhere to the helper’s plea to flee and run from the area; “I can help by not being here”. Strollers see the same emergency situation and reluctantly, slowly and half-heartedly walk away with a continual stare over their shoulder to keep an eye on the unfolding situation; “I don’t care to help”. Gawkers due the minimal that the helpers have demanded. They get as close to the danger as possible without crossing the thin blue warning line; “I will not help the helpers”. Finally, the defiant group ignores all signs of trouble, breaks through or covertly recons the scene seeking its weak point so they can get a closer look; “I will impede the helpers and the victim’s help”.

The entire world apart from Jesus Christ is in the victim status. Many are type one victims in that they do not know, either willingly or unbeknownst to them that their sin separates them from a loving God. The Bible says that the world is ignorant of their status (Eph. 4:17-19). Still, others are type two victims. When they finally grasp the peril of their situation and begin to cry out for help, Jesus answers their cry. Jesus describes a tax collector who beat his chest and cried out for help (Luke 18:13). Helpers are those who actually do what Jesus has commanded, “Go and make disciples”. They are in the trenches seeking the lost, careful of their own possible fate as they tangle with sin and sinners but unflinching in their attack. Paul and many others know the price of being a helper but press on regardless (2 Corth. 11:24-27). Runners are those who understand that sin is deadly and they must flee from its presence or fall prey to its enticement. Joseph ran from Potiphar’s wife because her temptation was too powerful for him to withstand if he had stayed (Gen. 39). Strollers are the proud ones who see the danger and very hesitantly walk away with constant looks over the shoulder at the sin that so easily entangles them. During the destruction of the valley of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot’s wife strolled while Lot ran. Her end was self-destruction (Gen. 19:26). Gawkers are the arrogant ones who only go as far away from sin as they are forced. If there were no lines or people telling them to get back they would walk right up to the sin thinking themselves beyond its icy grasp. King David must have considered himself beyond sin’s death spear as he stared at a women, called her to his home and went down the infamous and often followed road of sensual temptation leading to self-destruction and agony (2 Sam. 11). Defiant individuals perceive fully what is occurring and can’t wait to get past the barriers, walk up to the sin and eagerly devour the grotesqueness. They are engrossed with what they see, can’t get enough and think destruction cannot possibly happen to them because they’re not like the guy on the ground. They must get close enough to smell the scene, taste the putrid poison and drink it down. Adam and Eve had everything yet they could not stop looking at and eventually walking up to and partaking of the sin that has killed every man women and child since that fateful moment.

So which one are you…Victim…Helper…Runner…Stroller…Gawker…Defiant?

Truth: The Nastiest Tasting Yet Most Critical Pill

Years ago my oldest son, Chandler was a young boy and he would not share a toy with his younger brother, Austin. Their grandfather, lovingly known as Pap-pap, happened to be in the room with my boys when the arguing erupted. After a few minutes of disputing about whom should get the toy, Pap-pap looked at Chandler and calmly (and somewhat sarcastically) asked, “What would Jesus do?” Chandler immediately bellowed as if in agony, “Ohhh, Pap-pap, why did you have to say that?!” and reluctantly handed Austin the toy. We still laugh about that moment to this day. You see, Chandler knew what truth was but he was choosing to ignore it for selfish reasons.

Truth surrounds us daily and yet we choose to ignore its weight and significance. For example, everyone knows these simple truths; smoking kills, alcohol poisons the brain, obesity shortens and reduces the quality of one’s life, helmets save lives, speeding is acceptable if you’re late for work…no wait, sorry, speeding is illegal because speed kills. This list could go on and on. Truth is ever present but we do not give it the time of day when it interferes with our own selfish desires and personal progress verses God’s intended path. It’s not that we don’t know, it’s that we don’t care in the moment and we choose the truth we desire to follow! But is that truth or just something that ‘feels right’?

The book of Ezekiel tells us what we are when we hear truth but ignore her anyway; we are a rebellious people (12:2). Jesus often referred back to this verse when He said “He who has ears let him hear”. The implication is obvious, we (believers) have the ability to understand but we most often choose to rebel unless it favors us. The natural state of man is to be an insurgent who fights against truth.

Charles Malik quipped correctly “The problem is not only to win souls but to save minds. If you win the whole world and lose the mind of the world, you will soon discover you have not won the world”. The Bible is clear that Christianity is about a renewing of the mind with truth as truth is not a ‘felt’ thing. People often hear, believe, and act on what they desire based on their hearts and their feelings despite scripture’s warning that our own hearts deceive us. Truth is only found in the written Word of God. God’s truth is terrifying and obliterates a person’s self-esteem and self-reliance. The Bible, like the military, tears one down to the minimum so God can re-build from the ground up stronger and better than before. Henry Rollins (not someone I endorse) stated, “Scar tissue is stronger than regular tissue, realize the strength, move on”.

The good news of the Bible is that Jesus has accomplished that which I cannot. He has conquered sin and death. I can do nothing but He has done everything. Truth is ever present if we would choose to assimilate its damming yet comforting principles. The question today is do we want the truth pill or do we desire our daily dose of hallucinogenic medication?

Infants are ignorant of truth; Kids are shielded from truth; Teenagers challenge truth; Adults ignore truth; Break the Mold!

Sharks, lions, and bears oh my!!

In 1975 my family vacationed in Ocean City, NJ. That was the year the infamous movie Jaws was released. I recall my dad responding to his children’s pleas to watch that movie with “If we go see this movie, you WILL go swimming in the ocean tomorrow!” As a wise father he knew the fear that would likely grip each of our young minds as we entered the Atlantic the next morning with new knowledge of what may lurk just beneath the surface. We went and saw the movie that night and did, in fact, swim in the ocean despite our newfound fears. Since then, I have never entered the beautiful depths without the ever-present awareness of row-after-row of razor sharp teeth that could seal my doom at any moment.

As humans, we have a well-deserved fear and respect for sharks, lions and bears because a ghastly death is possible if not likely if we attempt to occupy their territory. We seem to instinctively know, if not learned from paranoid parents and the Discovery Channel that these carnivores will, if given the opportunity, devour us causing an agonizing death. It is directly due to this rightly placed fear that we avoid certain times of the day in the ocean, hang our food high in a tree when camping and don’t meander through the Serengeti without a rifle.

Unfortunately, we often do not hold that which can destroy our soul with the same reverence and awe. We habitually play like a child with reckless abandon in places of this world that we should, and in fact very likely know are fraught with dangerous sin traps, lifeblood sucking pitfalls, and God distancing temptations. We haphazardly enter Satan’s lair convincing ourselves that it will be okay this time, God wants us to, we can resist the temptation and help others, grace abounds so why not, and various other falsehoods. But the truth is, shark’s teeth are created to shred meat, lion’s claws are designed to slice and hold its prey, a bear’s power is prepared to overcome the weak, and sin exists and will consume the unwitting and foolhardy soul that dares come hither.

When will we understand? When will we grasp the darkness of our soul to scamper from the light? When will we desist playing with fire and discontinue blaming others when we get burned?

God and God alone has the power to overcome our sinful desires. We are truly a moth mesmerized by a flame flickering in the darkness. The difference is that we, unlike the moth, were given a conscious, a soul, and the ability to cry out to the living Savior so that we may avoid our deserved demise.

God asks “When will we realize sin is and always will be a machine of sorrow, emptiness, misery, and death?” Choose life, peace, joy, comfort and glorifying the Creator rather than the creation.

Run to the Savior who does love you but cannot ignore the sin that so easily entangles you. Do not give strength to your sin by counting on personal willpower but instead on the power of the Holy Spirit to free you from the bondage of death. 

God of Wonders

Just south of the U.S. Mexican border in the expansive Chihuahuan desert, abruptly springs the Naica Mountains. This mountain range derived its name because it sits on top of the deep and ancient Naica fault that birthed these crags. In the late 1800s, prospectors began to dig into the Naica dust in hopes of finding buried treasure that only Mother Nature could create. It did not take long till miners discovered precious metals like lead, zinc, and silver. Occasionally a mineworker would find small yet striking crystals in the rocks.

In April of 2000 brothers Juan and Pedro Sanchez did not believe the mine had given up the last of its booty and entered the dark and deep mine shafts. They were not novices at mining and so they began to excavate new tunnels in search of elusive hidden treasure. Suddenly and unexpectedly, their shovels pierced a rock and mud wall. The heat and stifling humidity from this never before seen room pummeled their bodies and filled their lungs as the mud tube in which they stood breathed in this alien air. As their dim miner’s lights stabbed the darkness they quickly realized that something was different about this chamber. No, it wasn’t precious metals, sparkling diamonds, or a lost city; it was a room bursting with never before seen massive crystals the size of steel girders that support modern day skyscrapers. 

National Geographic explorers and scientists have since voyaged the half-mile conduit and entered the dwelling that is justly named The Cathedral of Crystals. Others who have gazed upon its grandeur have nicknamed it The Sistine Chapel of Crystals. Nat Geo describes the view as “It looks like Superman's fortress. Hidden deep beneath the surface of the Earth is one of the greatest natural marvels on the planet: a giant crystal cave with crystals up to 36 feet long and weighing 55 tons. But this scorching cavern could kill humans after just 15 minutes of exposure.”  

Humankind seems to have an unquenchable compulsion to explore, find answers, and discover the mysterious. It is this motivation that propelled Ponce De Leon to seek the Fountains of Youth, Christopher Columbus to seek a route to the riches of India, and Bill Gates to expand the realms of possibility in microchips. It is this drive that most often attributes to great and magnificent encounters such as the Naica Caverns.

I would imagine when Juan and Pedro first crawled out of the bowels of the earth and excitedly witnessed to others what they found, their friends likely thought they had inhaled too much toxic cavern gas. Eventually they were able to coax someone else to breach the earth’s surface and slowly travel to the immense depths to view never before seen and indescribable beauty beyond measure. The Sistine Chapel of Crystals has been in that location for many millennia and has simply sat there waiting for adventurers to discover its creative and breathtaking splendor.

You see, it’s not that the crystals were not there, they were; it was that no one sought them out and no one opened up the craggy door to absorb their intensity. But once they opened this portal they could not contain their excitement, they had to go and tell others of this unseen miracle.

In all of history something like these glowing skeletons were relegated to fictional books like Journey to the Center of the Earth but now the unreal has become real.

While the Cathedral of Crystals is assuredly remarkable, defies logic, and to some level believability, it does not rise to the level of paranormal. That is, science understands how these improbable formations came into existence. There does exist, however, something behind these translucent treasures that is in a real sense paranormal. That something is what we call God. The all-powerful Being transcends all known laws of science and is the force that allows such wonders to exist. God is far more intense, awe inspiring, bewildering, and awesome than anything we behold with the naked or aided eye. God is the greatest treasure of all and unlike the caverns in the Chihuahuan desert that require discovery; God has and is seeking you.

Isn’t that incredible to consider that God wants and loves you so much that He created you and left His thumbprint to quench your natural drive to know something is true; in particular, the existence of an unseen Being? He offers such exhibits as the massive crystals, quantum particles, and colossal universe so you could know He truly is! Are you burrowing around seeking the ultimate pearl and are your eyes wide open to the opulence that awaits you? It would be a travesty to traverse this plain and miss the reality that surrounds you!

“Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavens
   and you waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the LORD,
   for at his command they were created, and he established them for ever and ever—
   he issued a decree that will never pass away.  Praise the LORD from the earth,
   you great sea creatures and all ocean depths, lightning and hail, snow and clouds,
   stormy winds that do his bidding, you mountains and all hills,
   fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all cattle, small creatures and flying birds”

Psalm 148:3-10

Ghosts in the Dark

The faces, screams, pain and gripping fear I have witnessed when I wore the badge and emotionlessly slid into a bag are so vivid at times as to haunt my thoughts when the light slides under my feet and darkness blankets my body and fills my eyes. Thumps in the night are not ghosts or demons but mangled bodies from the past delivered by darkness untold for me to embrace and view them again. My futile attempts to flex muscle against unseen forces have reached their end. I now fear reality as the thoughts of yesterday cripple my today. I have entered the wormhole and no pill or soothsayer can cloak that which has been revealed. I am thankful my once soulless eyes have been forced to see the depth of man’s weakness but there are times I wish I could taste imitation again. To be able to close my eyes to the barbarians at my gate and live again in wonderment in lieu of unshakable death is tempting as if it is even feasible. Alas, there is no Disneyland but only foggy voids of despair, emptiness, dread and hollowness by which I breathe. My hands and feet desperately clamber for a familiar point of contact only to find they are all shifting pixels of odd beauty pulling my energy but returning no favors. I have spent my life hiking an open path of choices with a magnificent singularity in view. I have reached this earthly Nirvana, tasted its deception, felt her nakedness and consumed her lust; I violently shake as I awake to the backside of the façade. The other side of the moon is nothing but dark, cold, and lifeless and man’s childhood dreams have been revealed as sterile and unfruitful.

We reside among devils. I now see them as they fly into our lungs, run through our veins and camp in our brains. God’s creation willingly ignores our condition because we do not wish to be healed; did I want to be healed? I wonder, had I known the day was coming when I was told there was no Santa might I have stayed in bed or scampered down the rabbit hole? Alas, mortality forges on because she believes that bag of diamonds and vault of gold is more than shiny stones; “It must be purpose!” But the black velvet bag is empty and the vault is hollow. We have no hope, we wallow in misery, why do we embrace meaninglessness and prefer not to look behind the curtain of Oz. Oh that Toto would have been crushed in the storm, burned to death by the broom or consumed by the flying carnivores. Instead, he, in his smug, cute, furry coat survived the war to expose a fake, no different than I, who resided on the dark side of the moon. I have no ruby slippers and the sorceress’ wand has been shattered and I daily float over the great abyss and tremble. Hovering past the wall and looking back the solid ground on which I played is but a shaved apple skin rotting from below. The world frolics ignoring friends who drop beneath and despises those who have pierced the atom never to return. All of humanity is content in their snow globe and I, and I, well I am here and I cannot be there. Christ is the Author of it all, and He and His Kingdom are all that ultimately exists, and one day that dimension will be my rest but not today. Today I forage for scraps of justice, love and peace to find deception, sorrow, and anguish in the dead that walk about in this stagnate pool of disease as they embrace every slimy sip. I beat my head against the wall in a futile attempt at the impossible as I have no power, no authority and no strength against the impenetrable darkness that is man. Christ and Christ alone has conquered the impossible, nay, the improbable with His drips of sacrificial blood on Calvary. Oh that the upright rotting corpses could witness the grandeur of Truth. I plea before the righteous Judge for their eternity but only a finger is offered and it is Christ pointing to the freewill of mankind to remain empty or accept His filling. We are loved but rarely consume its sweetness choosing to immerse ourselves in the cesspool of rot. Why?        

Rant on Science

Forgive my rant but it is such an inane assertion by non-believers to say that Christians ‘simply’ want to invoke the boogey man when in fact we have the capability to understand theoretical physics at a much deeper level. It is my view that they, not us, are staying simplistic when they ‘simply’ state “Big Bang” or “Millions and millions of years ago…” (sorry, but isn’t that what children’s books start with? E.g., “In a distant land a long long time ago…”) We, believers, go deeper and further to attempt to grasp the Infinite that stands behind it and truly getting to the “why” and “how”. To me the real questions are why are they limiting the research? Why not expound the realm of possibilities? Is that not what science and in particular quantum sciences are created to dissect? I mean, why, would an individual of any stature out of hand exclude something that is at minimal possible and at peak likely?