I’ve always loved Disneyland… Who doesn’t? Apart from the high cost of admission, expensive treats, overpriced meals, long lines, and crowded streets…it’s the happiest place on earth. One of my first scary thrill rides was the Matterhorn…before Magic Mountain, and California adventure…the Matterhorn was. It stood as the “long line” ride of the day. With the exception of needing a neck-brace and another lunch when I completed the ride…it was a lot of fun. The Matterhorn remains a nostalgic part of the Disney Land experience…It’s still enjoyed…when it’s a ride…
I recently ran across a picture of the ride’s inspiration. Here it is in Zermatt, Switzerland. The peak of the mighty Matterhorn! 
en.wikipedia.org
Anyone who knows me well, knows that mountains enliven me, they capture my attention…every time.
I used to enjoy my lunch break in an office space in Snoqualmie, WA. I had a perfect view of the majestic Mount Si. Something would well up within me every time I sat there… I would find myself whispering, “I know You do. I love you, too, Jesus!”
The beauty, the grandeur, the towering strength causes my jaw to loosen a notch and my hands to raise to the Creator of such loveliness. They stand as portraits of God’s might, His immutability, His Power. I appreciate them most when they’re admired…behind my i-phone camera…..at their base….from a scenic viewpoint. Well that’s not all-together true…. I’ve enjoyed climbing a few of the smaller ones in the Northwest. Every conquered step…a genuine victory!
Personal mountains in my life are rarely… (OK never) met with the same awe…
I don’t grab a camera. I don’t drop my jaw…I drop my head…I close my eyes.
These mountains are different! They threaten, intimidate, sap joy, shout defeat, laugh at our frail humanity.
…but they don’t have to!
The One who put the mountains in place, who carved out every ravine, and formed the jagged crags, knows all about the Matterhorn you face. From an entirely different vantage point, He reveals the pathway and will provide the strength to scale it!
What’s your Matterhorn? Every mountain has a name. Is it Cancer? Bankruptcy? A wayward child? Joblessness? A strained friendship? Betrayal? Divorce? Adultery? Addiction?
God knows every angle of your fierce mountain….and doesn’t shame you. He loves you. He cares. All that concerns you, concerns Him too! Oh that you would cry out to Him as you face this mountain. He will be your constant Companion, will point the way, and provide the strength to summit. From that peak a new song will ring out… His victory song in your heart!
May courage fill your soul as you reflect on His anchor of hope today:
May He send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem. May He grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed. (Psalm 20:2) The Lord my God lights up my darkness. In Your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall! God’s way is PERFECT! All the Lord’s promises prove true! He is a shield for all who look to Him for protection! (Psalm 18:28b-30)
Beauty Awaits…
Patty
A great encouraging word. 🙂 The awe in “lifes mountains” tends to be the from the other side, When we look at at the strength, wisdom and agility it has produced in us to climb the even bigger mountains ahead of us. With God as a climbing partner we don’t have to fear them anymore.
Oh Christina, you nailed it..we need the mountains in our life to build the endurance, strength, virtues. Thank you for the insights you added to the very thing I was pondering this morning! I love it! I love YOU!
Hi Patty! This is Sharlee. I am sooooo exited about your blog. What a great way to foster community among Lake City Ladies!! I am so with you on the mountains declaring the glory of God and speaking His Protection and Power to my soul. One of the blessings of traveling 10 hours a week on North Idaho highways for work is the chance to revel in God’s Creation. 🙂 Psalm 62 told me today that I should wait silently before my God. Mountains make that easier. And waiting silently for Him makes my personal mountains easier to place in perspective. Have a great day.! Sharlee
Thank you, Sharlee! Thank you for drawing my attention to that most incredible passage – He alone is our rock and our fortress!
I love mountains, too, Patty. I use to be able to look at Canfield Mt. (I know, not quite the Matterhorn) from my office, but it brought me peace. I love that as we travel, there are so many different kinds. The rocky ones, the ones that look smooth (from a distance), some with their surface hidden under the trees, the beautiful red ones, even the ones with snow on them (did I just say that?). I like that there are caves hidden in them, and the mystery in those caves. That some are massive, that I’m sure I’ll never reach, and some not quite as high, but I believe I can reach the top. (on my own? hmmmm, and they probably take longer to climb, because I try to do it on my own.) I look for the little streams and waterfalls coming down the sides. Thank you for this post. I don’t think I’ll ever look at “my mountains” in the same way. Even as I was responding and realizing how different every mountain is, and how sometimes they’re too much for me to climb, God will get me there. He will help me to reach the top and get to the other side. And those hidden rocks that I stumble over along the way, will be in the distance and I will look back, and look up again, and see the beauty, and know what God has brought me through.
Wow, Cindy…I love your deep and reflective thoughts on these mountains in our life. What a picture as we look back over the rocks that made us stumble along the way, yet had victory over – as we peer back on them from the top. Thank you for enlarging my own picture by taking time to share those thoughts that came to your spirit. What a gift you just gave me! Many blessings, Patty
Thank you! For all your actions and words. God’s hand is on you as He guides you down all of our paths with what He has laid on your heart to share with we ladies of LCCC. What you allow God to do in your life is a wonderful blessing to us! Praise God for you! Terri
Thanks so much, Terri, for your words of encouragement. It is such a joy to lean into our Lord and rely on His strength for everything we long to do WITH HIM and THROUGH HIS STRENGTH. I am so daily reminded of my desperate need for Him. Have an incredible weekend! Patty
Thank you for your beautiful encouraging words. Please pray for me. I am going through some tough times. I want to give it all to Jesus and watch him take them into his loving guiding arms. Not always so easy to hand over!
I love you so much as a Christian Sister and friend! Blessings as God grants you his perfect will for your life as you so obviously turn it to him!
The big secret to it all. Thank you Pattym. Love hearing your many words of wisdom!
I love you!
Terri
I yearn to be so alert to the nearness of his presence throughout the moments of my day, so that like air, I simply inhale the peace of His nearness and exhale the worries and weights that so easily entangle.
Oh Terri, He is so willing to not only carry these heavy burdens, but to carry His precious daughter through these tough seasons. You are not alone. His wisdom, His strength, His peace, the fullness of His love is with you…EVERY moment! Anchor to that love!
Patty, I needed this. You have no idea. Something brought me to your Wall. It was, and is, exactly what I needed to hear at this moment of extreme chaos that is my life right now. I look forward to more. I will always love you. – Elizabeth
Dearest Elizabeth, I am so grateful that decades ago Jesus saw fit to allow our paths to walk together. He loves you so much and is pursuing you…still! I am so honored that these decades later, He would still allow His encouragement to flow through me, to YOU! You are dearly loved! Patty