You can find lessons from God in the most surprising places. And sometimes when you least expect it, God says something profound.
Over the weekend I went with the family to experience a night hike in a nature park near our home. We arrived early enough to spend a few minutes with Cliff, who would be our guide on our walk through the dark woods in the middle of a very heavily populated part of Florida. Not much open space around here, unless it’s water. In fact, you wouldn’t even know the park was here unless you were looking for it. A well hidden secret.
God sometimes hides things from us too. Sometimes he makes us look for the treasures of this life. He doesn’t just hand things to us, we have to seek them out. I wrote something about God’s hide and seek a while back. If you’d like to read it you can do so here.
Before our hike, Cliff showed us some owls and other birds that are cared for at the park. We also saw peacocks which was a treat. We learned some interesting facts about some of God’s amazing creations. Finally it got dark enough to head out on our walk. We meandered through the woods adjusting our eyes to the darkness as the sun set in the distance. We arrived at a viewing dock over a small lake. As we spotted bats swooping in the air someone excitedly pointed out that we were being watched. Sure enough. In the water, at just the right spot where the fading light was still reflecting off the water we saw an eye and a snout barely above the surface. An alligator was quietly watching us. We were in no danger but it was a little unnerving to feel him watching us. I again marveled at the idea that there was so much hidden that could only be discovered by paying close attention. God’s treasures were everywhere.
There was one point when we were walking along a boardwalk and I overheard a conversation between two of my grandchildren. Ian pointed beyond the railing and said, “look, there’s a monument.” Annabelle, who had been listening to the guide, said, “that’s the storm sewer.” She was right, it was a concrete structure, perhaps two feet high, with a manhole cover on the top. Ian shrugged and said, “well, to an ant it’s a sky scraper.”
When he said it I just thought it was a funny comment but as I’ve thought about it I realize that he was pointing out something I need to learn.
We often don’t realize that our perspective has everything to do with how we live our lives. From the ant’s perspective that structure truly was huge. But from our perspective it was nothing significant at all.
God has been trying recently to teach me this very thing. The issues that I face sometimes appear like mountains that I can’t hope to get beyond. But from God’s perspective?
Nothing but a molehill.
Have you ever stepped on a molehill? They have no real substance at all. With the slightest bit of pressure they disappear, sinking into the ground where they came from.
If you ask Him, God will show you that some of things you think are mountains are really just molehills to Him too.
Mark 11:23 Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.