Saturday morning’s sunshine and light snow begged for a walk, so I leashed Pepper, put on my ‘dungarees’ and off we went. The sights were absolutely gorgeous! With about eight inches of fluffy snow, the trees were blanketed with white beauty, and an extra bonus was that the road had not been traveled. However, as I trudged along I realized that even the fluffiest snow causes resistance and soon I was puffing. My body said, “Turn back, this is too hard; but my mind reminded my body of the sticky bun binge last evening. At the mere thought of the delicious treat my mouth started to water. There are several left and I’m dreaming of a nice cup of coffee to go along with them! My mind says, “Keep walking, fatso!”
Now that that battle is over, the scenery before me turns my heart to my Maker. How awesome is His Mighty Creative Hand! Every moment of every day He is sending out reminders across the universe of His amazing power and my spirit sings His praise. Suddenly, I realize that the walk isn’t so strenuous. My mind reminds my body how good it is to hit that target heart-rate, and for once, my body agrees.
It’s not a long walk, but today it does seem longer than usual: the snow is deep; the wind is nipping my nose. My legs are cold. My body says, “Maybe we should turn around.” But my mind says, “Keep walking, and my spirit says, “Remember?”
What pushes me to keep going more than the necessary target heart rate? I know what is waiting for me at the end of the road: the view! I will try to describe it. The woods give way to a panoramic view of several mountain ranges. Probably a field at one time, the ground before me is covered with brambles and low bushes, each trimmed in white; and the edge of the field is lined with pine trees that look like sentinels laced with snow – a scattering of junior sentinels stand before them.
The closer hills roll and tumble across the scene and the distant mountains are hazy blue due to the falling snow. It isn’t snowing much, just enough to finish off the beauty – in fact, the sky is a patchwork of blues and dancing clouds. Awesome! It was worth every step.
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed;
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
When through the woods and forest glades I wander
and hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
when I look down from lofty mountain grandeur,
and hear the brook, and feel he gentle breeze;
Then sings my soul…
As I turn to walk home, I’m once again praising God. My heart is full; that’s when my eyes see our paths: Pepper’s and mine. My path is straight while her path zigzags all over the road. It’s comical to see, but My Heavenly Father has another lesson for me! His way is perfect, if only I’d follow His steps; but my desires seem to tempt me from it like the many scented tracks that Pepper follows shortly, only to be pulled back by the leash.
I’m thankful for God’s “leash” on my life. I trust Him to know what’s best and ask His forgiveness when I strain to go as far as I can from Him. How foolish; but I know that someday, that struggle will all be over. The world will hold no fascination for me, I will be like Him! Oh what a day! Oh, what a promise!
“As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.” Psalm 17: 15
Beyond Common Sense 