This past summer, my family and I took a trip out West. It was a trip that allowed us to see some of the West’s most beautiful scenery. One such place that we visited was Pike’s Peak, Colorado. As amazing as this place was to visit, it was also a place that caused me to face one of my fears head-on. If you are not familiar with Pike’s Peak, let me explain a little about the place. It is the tallest summit in Colorado, with an elevation of 14,115 feet above sea level. It consists of a two-lane, snake-like, winding road with 156 hairpin turns and is considered one of America’s most dangerous racetracks due to the 2,000-foot drops at some of those turns. My family and I drove our vehicle up that road in our car. Oh, and by the way, I am slightly terrified of heights.
As we began to drive up the incline to the summit, I found myself hyperventilating at the scenes I saw before my eyes. I swear we were getting ready to drive off the cliff straight for the clouds, but thankfully it was just my skewed perspective from my fear of heights.
My family found it hilarious as I buried myself in the floorboard of our car. I just couldn’t look anymore. I had to just trust that my husband, that was driving the car, would get us to the top safely. When we finally reached the summit, I was able to breathe. We stepped out of the car and surveyed the beautiful and astounding views from the top. I had a very different perspective, a new point of view.
Now I could see what the climb had been for. It was truly an amazing experience for our family and quite comical due to my behavior from my fear that overwhelmed me.
When we began to descend from the peak, I did not face the same struggle because I could now see where we were going. I’m not sure why my mind behaves this way, but I am reminded of the similarities to how we react when we face storms and struggles in this life. We can become paralyzed with fear and lock up when we have to face frightening situations. Maybe you have experienced this feeling recently, or maybe you are experiencing it now. When we feel like life is out of control, we usually lose the correct perspective and begin to panic.
God’s word reminds us that He is for us and is working all things out. And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 When life seems overwhelming, and it doesn’t make sense, we might have the tendency to lose heart and give up hope. Our hope cannot lie in our circumstances but in the assurance that God is in control of everything.
For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him, all things hold together. Colossians 1:16-17
We must truly trust that God is fighting on our behalf and that He holds it all. We cannot abandon the plan for our lives just because things look scary from our point of view. As we wait patiently for Him to work, we can trust that He is for us. We can cling to Him the same way I clung unto the floorboard of the car as we went up the road to the summit.
There is a quote by Corrie Ten Boom that always encourages me to keep my perspective in line; it is this: When a train goes through a tunnel and gets dark, you don’t throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.” Yes and amen! God is good, and He wants the very best for our lives. Sometimes, it just doesn’t make sense to us when we face challenging situations; we wonder how this could be true. But, with Him in control, we must be still and wait on Him.
“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light and your justice as the noonday.”Psalms 37:4-6
I pray that as each of us reads this, we realize that His ways are perfect and we can trust Him. As we cling to Him with everything that we have inside us, we can ask Him to give us a new point of view.
Amanda Patterson
Lean into Jesus Ministries
#amandapattersonblogs