Monday Malarkey #4: I am a pilgrim and this is my progress

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart."

~Helen Keller

 As I stood at the bottom of the mountain in the cool morning air as crisp and sharp as ice, I thought of the golden aspens that quivered in the sunshine. At first everyone was laughing and chattering about being up at six to climb a mountain. But as the trail got more narrow and the path more steep, our words eluded us.We climbed like the sleepy sun that rose with us. Some quit early complaining that the mountain was too steep and the air too cold. But i willed my legs to keep moving, pleading the sun to relieve me of the darkness.

I got most of the way up when i stopped. The sun's beams were peaking over the horizon now. It had been a straight up climb for the last twenty minutes and I stopped on a ledge with some others. The view was fantastic. Mountains lined the horizon and trees grew like a mold on the land. My friend looked down the mountain at the steep rocky terrain that lay below us and told me she was going to head back down. I looked at the cross on the top of the mountain and feeling the heaviness in my chest, I agreed to go back down with her. Then i heard a sweet voice.

  It was honey to my senses but now it was firm. Not harsh or mean, but firm. It was God's voice and he said My beloved, this is a symbol of your spiritual journey. Are you going to quit early or are you going to go all the way with me to reach the cross? I felt my heart leap in my chest and a smile crept on my face. "I'm going up" i announced.

The mountain got steeper and everywhere i stepped the dirt crumbled beneath my feet. I grew weary but kept my eyes on the cross and my mind on the sweetness of the Lord. It took me a while to navigate my way up to the top, but when i did i used my last bit of energy to hoist myself onto the rocks where the cross lay. "I made it" I thought. The sun was now a bright shining beacon on the horizon. I noticed garments laying on the cross and slipped the African bracelet that I wore on the cross as my contribution. The bracelet, that symbolizes my love for Africa and how God used me, a sinner, for his divine glory. This was all i had to offer him, but somehow I knew it was enough.

Thanks for reading, I post a new blog every Monday!!