“Help! Help! No help, I’m ... on skis, Ashley. That’s the ... poor girl at the top of the line headed to the bunny slope lift was scared to death ... with fear to the point t
“Help! Help! No help, I’m sliding!”
“You’re on skis, Ashley. That’s the point.”
The poor girl at the top of the line headed to the bunny slope lift was scared to death paralyzed with fear to the point that any tiny move seemed destined to pitch her down the mountain out of control. Her friend seemed not to understand the direness of her situation. To her skiing was easy. She didn’t understand, but I did.
Always longer on doubt and fear than on calm and cool in the sports arena, I understood. The movement seems unfamiliar, unexpected, and dangerous. What seemed like such a fun idea only moments before now seems like the dumbest thing anyone’s ever talked you into.
Okay, so even now there are hundreds of people swooshing down these slopes. They obviously know what they are doing. You obviously don’t and so fear takes over. No not just fear but overwhelming panic that grips your gut and wrenches out small terrified shrieks. This is nuts—craziness. Much better to turn back from this unknown now and go back to the safety of what you know.
And yet, what Ashley couldn’t see at that moment, what she couldn’t yet feel is how it feels to fly. Swooping down the mountain with only the wind and the white powder for friends. It’s exhilarating, awe-inspiring, life changing. But right there, on the fringes looking in, it just feels like something you’ll never be able to do.
I think that’s how a lot of people live life. They see the people who have Jesus in their lives. They see the people who have peace, and it looks like so much fun. Yet here they are, unsure of how or if to make that decision. Unsure if they can really “do this.”
The one thing these people don’t need is those “skiers” of us acting like they’re silly for feeling like they do. They aren’t silly. Their fear is real, and if we don’t help them through their fear, they’re likely to click those skies right off and go sit down. Instead get back to the place where you were fearful of taking this giant leap and allow them to work through their fear with you their side.
Undoubtedly they will be swooshing down the slopes of faith in no time, and maybe, just maybe they’ll offer some understanding to another fearful skier along the way.
Beware: The Dreaded Article
The fine art of writing for your e-zineStymied. It’s a good word to describe those poor, unfortunate souls who have the knowledge to write a content-rich article but who run from the idea like a quarter horse headed for the finish line. Why do they run? Too often because when they sit down with a blank sheet of paper or a blank computer screen, it all seems too overwhelming to even begin, and so they don’t.Thoughts on the Road to Emmaus
“. . . their eyes were opened, and they recognized him . . .” –Luke 24:31Abide in Me
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.” --John 15: 7