A Strong Helping Hand

Isaiah 41:13

1599 Geneva Bible (GNV)

¹³ For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not, I will help thee.

Last week I went out to Joshua Tree National Park with my brother Elwood and his wife and a couple carloads of friends. My wife, Sylvia, longed to go along, but she had other duties and her 97 year-old mother to look after.

We did a lot of climbing on the boulder kopjes around Hidden Valley. Most of the group decided to climb Rainbow, the highest point on the rim of kopjes surrounding the valley. There are two ways to climb these piles of rocks. One is to send a capable person up the rock with a rope and have him or her anchor this rope at several points on the way up. Then one person in the group can climb up and rappel back down again. Then the next person does the same thing until finally all have had a chance to climb.

Another way is to forget the equipment and take the whole group up and down less precipitous routes. All of us have some degree of fear of heights. I think I have more fear than my brother or my daughter. On our way up Rainbow we came to several spots where we had to cross a gap between two boulders. The gaps were about twenty feet deep so that any fall would be very painful and very possibly fatal.

The gap was only about three feet across and had some good handholds and spots to step on. The drop between the boulders sent shivers up and down the spine, however. “What if my hand lost its grip or my foot slipped?” Self-preservation instincts took over. An adrenalin rush in the blood stream almost paralyzed some of the climbers. It was at this point that the proffered hand of an experienced climber or the offer to “spot” the foot (hold the foot from slipping) became very welcome. The climb proceeded with renewed confidence.

At the summit we all sat around and viewed the entire Hidden Valley. Dozens of earth-bound tourists walked the “Loop Trail” unaware of the thrill of the climb. Meanwhile the warm breeze and sunshine dispelled the fear. All of life’s stressors, snubs, and slights were forgotten. A new joie de vivre enveloped our very souls.

Thank You, Lord, for taking my hand or spotting my foot just when I need it most in my life’s difficulties.