Sunday Reflection - Perspective for the New Year

Have you ever stood on the top of a high mountain and looked out over miles and miles of space - valleys, mountains, plains, houses, farms, cities and villages?  I have several times over the years in our travels.

One memprable time was on one of our trips to Canada to visit with our friends who had a guest ranch.  They also had a mountain camp up in the Canadian Rockies.  One all-day ride was the 40-Mile Ridge ride.  It was a steep ride up to the top of a mountain where you could see 40 or more miles in every direction - hence the name 40 Mile Ridge.  We could see over the valleys where people camped and hiked.

When we were down in our valley where we camped our perspective was limited by the trees and mountain ridges.  We couldn't see other campers or valleys.  Up on 40-Mile our perspective was much greater.

Our relationship with God is like that.  I live in the valley where I can't see that much, but God Iives on the mountain top where he can see so much more and his vision is not limited to 40 miles.

Psalm 119:105 says:  Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

If you think about the type of lamps used in Old Testament times, it was a small, oil-burning lamp that provided only a small glow around the lamp.  So, when the writer of that psalm talked about God's word being a light on our path, the illumination would be pretty small in scope.  We might have enough light to see where our next step should be to stay on the path, but beyond that small illumination everything was still in darkness.

My experience with God has been like that.  Whenever I felt God was showing me something it was only a small glimpse of the next step to take.  The whole path and the ultimate destination of that step was never revealed.  My perspective has always been one of being in the valley.

My faith is that God sits up on 40-Mile Ridge and knows where he's leading me.

I don't know where God will lead me and Betty in 2012, but I have faith in his guidance.

We wish you all a God-blessed and a God-led New Year!