Anticipation

Monarch Ski Area, Colorado

One of my favorite ski hills in Colorado is not one of the biggest.  It is not surrounded by condos and boutiques.  People come here to ski more than to be seen.  They don't want man-made snow.  They want the real thing; the God produced stuff.  They want it steep and deep but there is one drawback.

The chairlifts at Monarch are SLOW!

Granted there is not as much vertical skiing at Monarch as there is at other resorts.  The chairlifts don't travel far but a person still sits on a lift for quite sometime.  And if you have ever had a board or skies strapped to your feet and dangling in the air, you don't want to hunker down here longer than necessary.  And pray that the lift doesn't stop!

Life can be painful as we anticipate Christ's return.

"...the one who endures to the end will be saved." Matthew 10:22 ESV

The pain of the chairlift is soon forgotten as my skis are pointed downhill on Little Mo, Great Divide or Tango (but not Gunbarrel...NEVER Gunbarrel).  The ride might be long and painful but the end result was worth the ride.

Your life might feel like a long slow ride on a chairlift.  It might even seem like the lift has stopped and the pain will never end.  But God has a place for you.  It is prepared.  

The ride of this life is worth the trip as we anticipate what God has prepared for us in heaven through Christ.

And by the way, there is a lot of beauty on the ride to the top.

(Click on picture to enlarge.)

Text and Photographs ©Copyright 2012 Douglas P. Brauner.  ARR.