Thursday, August 18, 2011

Invisible Evidence

(This post is part of the ChristianWriters.com blog chain. The topic this month is "august"...as in majestic, grandeur, etc. Please check out the other writers' links to the right of this post as there are some great entries to read.)

Today, I've decided to post a picture of a mountain. It is a colorful mountain--full of life, strength, and grandeur. It is a mountain many have climbed, yet no one has conquered in its entirety. It is a mountain that stands above all other mountains, and although many pictures have been taken of it, none of them ever captures its full character. It is indeed majestic (or, "august") and breathtaking all at the same time. It even offers refuge from a storm.

What? Don't you see it?

The evidence for its existence is abundant. Thousands of books have been written about it. The effect it has on a person is also readily apparent if you know where to look. Much like a magnetic field or the wind blowing across a prairie, the impact can even be measured and documented. One look at the mountain and a person's life could be altered forever for the better.

But what is the name of this mountain? The mountain is the Word. And that Word has the power to change a person's life. It is a rock that one can build their life upon and be sure of its foundation, even in the worst of storms.

Perhaps at this point, though, I should mention that to see and navigate this mountain, it takes one extra piece of equipment: faith. Now this "faith" is not just wishful thinking, or even the power of positive thinking. It is genuine and true, and no matter how weak or wavering it is, God responds to it.

Ironically enough, belief in this mountain also produces a mountain of evidence. It's not hard to find examples of deliverances from addiction, restored marriages, physical healings, restored hope, and cases where lives have been completely turned around. I even stopped drinking coffee because of it (and no, I'm not a Mormon).

Yet, as I've said above, this is a mountain that no one person has ever mastered. Even if you think you know every square inch of it and have heard or seen it all before, God has a funny, gentle way of pointing out all that you've missed. I'm reminded of the game of Othello, where on the box it used to have the slogan, "A minute to learn, a lifetime to master."

How about you? Do you think you'll ever get to the bottom of the Word? What evidence has God produced in your life?

10 comments:

  1. What a great anology!

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  2. Ha! This little comment box could never hold the list of changes/evidence God has produced in my life! What a great post, Mike! Loved it!

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  3. What a clever take on "august"! There are those who try to plow through the mountain as though it doesn't exist, then they can't figure out why they're always charging uphill, and falling back exhausted.

    I have played the game Othello and similar ones (Pente and Go pop to mind). I think it's fascinating that it never gets old, no matter how many times you play it.

    ~ VT

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  4. You got me hooked from the first few lines...I kept waiting for the pictures...then I saw it in my minds-eye.. Great Job Mike- truly August!!!!

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  5. Like Terrie, I was waiting for the'reveal'. Very clever. Actually, what came to mind was visiting Mt. McKinley (Denali) in Alaska. I don't care how many other mountains you've seen or how breathtaking they were, Denali (the tallest mountain in NA) literally gives you the shivers. It is SO MUCH BIGGER AND MAJESTIC than anything else around it, it's almost scary...

    (That's what I was seeing when I read your post:)

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  6. Nice twist of a post and a great use of the blog theme.

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  7. Michael, excellent post! Loved the twist and you couldn't have chosen a more "august" theme!

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  8. Terrific post, Mike! Everything you wrote was right on target. I'm with Lynn, though; there's not enough space to list the evidences of God's work in my life.

    Gotta go read your "no more coffee" post now...

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  9. good one Michael. I want to say that I know this mountain and that I've climbed in, but I know there is so much more of it for me to see and discovery!

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