À La Sainte Terre: A Walk In The Wilderness

It's a simple feeling, really. I close my eyes and I breathe in deeply. The mountain air fills my lungs with peace and grace. I stare out at the vast everything and wondered how I got here, how I got to this place. Most of me doesn't care how I got here, but is just glad I am here. I've never quite figured out what it is about the mountains that brings me to my knees, but boy does it. maybe it's the fact that they remind me of my place in the world. maybe it's the stillness that soothes me back to life. maybe it's the strength that they hold while still carrying a gentle presence. or maybe, just maybe, it's the way I can hear God whisper as the wind settles in the field.

I really believe that I love the mountains so because that is how the creator best speaks to me. Not just in the picture-esque landscape, but through the walking in between as well. I have no choice but to raise my head to the sweet hallelujahs that surround me in the wilderness. I breathe in slow and smooth as a sign of relief. in the wilderness, i do not have to fret.

On my most recent trip, the creator met me at the trailhead and joined me in my journey across the beautiful Virginia Mountains. Little did I know that he had more in store for this trip than I planned.

It was simple. cold and bare, but very quite simple. I had signed up for a trip that didn't take me home, but pretty much put me in the place my heart so often longed for. I found myself stripped clean of all things except Jesus.

Many times I found myself staring out at the mountain view and completely speechless at the wonder of this earth: how broken, but how beautiful this earth really is. I could feel the weight of God's reckless love for his people.

on the last day I wrote this in my journal:

"If I learned anything from this trip it's that God provides. blisters? he makes them hurt less. cold? he'll send clothes. lonely? he will remind you that he is near. worn out? he'll chill your water. This has been the best backpacking trip to date and i believe it is only so because God provided. time and time again He showed up. Whether or not anyone else recognized it, he was moving. and it wasn't just so we could have a great trip, but it was so we would give him the glory when we came down from the mountain. He fed my soul, He gave me new perspective, and most of all, He loved on me every single second of every single day. I'm almost sad to have this solitude be over. But I am excited to take what i've learned "to the streets." Praise. Infinite Praise."

Sometimes all you need is a little silence with the creator. To sit and ponder together while watching the sun set on a mountain. You'd be amazed at what it does for your spirit.

sweet mercies: