Steep Hill of Life

I noticed lately that the constant topic regardless of what environment I am in these days concerns the economy and politics. On my group or club rides I hear people talking about it, at work, at home, with clients and just about everywhere.

From a cycling point of view I am a cyclist that loves flatter terrain more than I do climbing a steep mountain. Climbing a mountain that extends 6 miles or more can get very discomforting. Normally when you plan a route you know about when it is coming and mentally you begin to prepare yourself that it will be discomforting. The reward of making it to the top is typically the sweet reward of coming back down and though there may be some work and concentration coming off the mountain the work is not as intense as going up.

I have never liked the season of winter because to me it is a very discomforting time especially when it comes to cycling in cold weather. You have to prepare mentally for the season if you want to continue to train outdoors. You feel the sharp sting of the cold wind on your face, fingers and toes. It can be a very discomforting ride, but yet many of us prepare and endure the winter season.

I could just cycle on flat terrain only and I could put my bike away for the winter. I can also tell you that in some odd way enduring the mountain climbs gives me a greater appreciation of the flatter terrain and enduring the cold chill of winter riding helps me appreciate the fact that spring, summer and fall seem to come back around each year.

For a number of years many people around the world concerning the economy have been living it up while riding in an economy of flat terrain and tropical breezes, but now we come to the time of a cold winter mountain climb. For many people who have already lost their jobs and many of us are certainly not sure what tomorrow will bring we are at the bottom of a steep mountain climb and looking up. The thought goes through the mind, “can I climb this hill?” Unlike cycling where a person can just choose to avoid the mountains and the winter season we cannot avoid the mountain climbs in our lives. We live a life of peaks and valleys. When we cycle in a group it is comforting to have friends along the ride with us and know that they too must endure the climb or the cold weather. Our friends have nothing really any more special to endure the elements than we have so it gives some odd sense of comfort to have those endure it with us. We are in this climb together. How can we help keep each other in a positive spirit as we face this climb?

Here we are sitting at the bottom of this climb and we have leaders in this country that we have to depend on to some degree to get us over this hill and get us to the other side. We have leaders that we follow as we get through this winter season of economic struggle, but it is up to each of us to climb this hill and have a perspective that we can make it over the hill. For me I trust in a Leader that exceeds all human leadership. A Leader that is said in Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Thirteen years ago I placed my trust in the Lord to guide me over the steep climbs of life and in the cold winter seasons of life. Each time I was confronted with those moments of looking up a steep road in my life and wondered how I would make it over I became anxious, but I can look back at each of those times and see that I made it over the crest. This has built my faith up over the years and yet at times the thought of the cold bitter winds of life weakens me at the knees and I remember to place my trust in the Lord to lead me through it. The leaders of the world are sometimes the most lost of all leaders and seem to be very unsure of where they will take us. Sometimes they think it best to take a diversion to avoid the mountain, but to me I will keep my trust in the Leader that I have chosen to get me over this climb.