It is said that Kootenay National Park, located on the British Columbia side
of the Canadian Rockies, is breathtakingly gorgeous. The tourist books describe
miles of interesting and intriguing trails, stunning water falls, and abundant
wildlife. The day we decided to visit it, however, it was pouring rain.
Not that we were necessarily deterred by this fact. After "swimming" through the
previous two days of the downpour, we were beginning to grow webbed feet!
Besides, my boys kept me on a very tight leash, so when we stopped at Pain Pots
trail, I dutifully got out of the van.
This was a much-anticipated hike for us, because we had heard raving reports
about the unusual iron-rich springs and colorfully stained earth. However, as we
stepped into the parking lot, we found that we were concentrating more on where
to put our feet to avoid the puddles than on the exact location of the trail
ahead.
We noticed some professional hikers step out into the rain from the vehicle
parked beside ours. They didn't seem particularly discouraged by the inclement
weather, but perhaps they hadn't just spent the last three days in it. Besides,
they were all decked out in appropriate rain gear, a luxury we had neglected to
pack with us!
"Papa! It's pouring!" Complained my boys.
Like I hadn't noticed, but it astonished me to hear them complain about it when
one of their favorite expressions is, "We aren't made out of sugar, we WON'T
melt!" I guess those three days in a row was just a bit much, even for my boys,
and their complaint was all the encouragement I needed to climb back into the
semi-dryness of the van. Soon we were headed to Radium Hot Springs, where, to
our amazement, we actually enjoyed five hours of sunshine.
It's incredible what a tiny bit of sun (and warm water!) Will do to unpleasant
dispositions, because when we left the hot spring, we had been transformed from
sour pusses to delighted tourists. The fact that the sunshine sort of stayed
with us for part of our road back to Banff also contributed to our improved
state of mind. When we reentered Kootenay National Park, we discovered that the
dull, gray roads were gone, and that the sunshine had turned this place into a
very attractive park. In fact, it was like we were seeing an entirely different
park from the one we had driven through earlier that same day.
When we again arrived at the Paint Pots trail, we decided on a little hike. As
we stood at the trailhead, however, we noticed the blackened treetops
surrounding us, telltale evidence of a forest fire.
"Where did they come from?" Asked one of my boys.
"We didn't see these before!" I agreed.
Why hadn't we seen the remains of the forest fire on our first visit to the
trail? Certainly not because the fire had happened while we were at Radium Hot
Springs! It's true that we had stayed there the entire afternoon, but no one
could start a forest fire in the pouring rain!
"I guess we were concentrating too much on the weather," concluded my older boy.
He was so right. Our vision had been blurred by our "pitiful" circumstances,
thus limiting our ability to see what was really out there.
Too often in life, we let our circumstances dictate our actions, our thoughts,
even the way we see things. Too often we do not notice the beauty that we are
surrounded by or the special heavenly gifts our Heavenly Father bestows upon us.
We even forget about the answers to our morning prayers that are faithfully
fulfilled during each and every day. We have blurry spiritual eyes, and we need
to put on our heavenly eyeglasses in order to see reality.
As long as we limit our view to an earthly perspective, we will miss the daily
blessings bestowed on us from our Father in heaven. Only by concentrating on
Jesus and walking with Him will our view be lifted up high. Only then will we be
able to see our circumstances from God's viewpoint. All fear will leave us, as
we will know that we have indeed a caring Father in Heaven.
"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for
the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at
the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition
from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Heb 12:2-3
NIV)
Pouring rain ahead! Let's anticipate with great eagerness what God has in store
for us instead of worrying about it.
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
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