Never Alone

Most Sunday afternoons is block of time where I give myself about three hours to disengage. That usually means flopping on the couch of our den to watch a golf tournament. Susan has already retreated to the bedroom for her long nap. I tend to dose off for a few minutes with the volume down low on the T.V. so I can watch the golfers in my semi-conscious state.

This time I took a brief diversion away to a story on the Discovery Channel about a daring photographer. This man liked to put himself in dangerous situations in order to capture shots in nature that few others have documented. There he was perched on a bluff, camera and long lens in hand, pointing toward some Alaska Brown bears trying to swoop fish out of a shallow river. As his camera's shutter fired away, he spoke about how the bears could run up the bluff in a few seconds and maul him. But he kept on shooting, and got some phenomenal photographs.

His next daring adventure was when he came upon a tall cliff next to an ocean bay with a large opening in the rock. He decided to climb up the steep cliff with a backpack filled with camera equipment, which the narrator said weighed as much as a golf bag full of clubs.

When he got to the top of the cliff, he then slowly eased his way over so that he was right over the opening of the cliff and then rappelled down until he got to the point where he could take some dramatic photos through the opening. Sadly, just as he got in the perfect position to take his pictures, his plan fell apart. His hands froze shut from fatigue and he became stuck on the rope, dangling a few feet from frigid water. That's when the lone ranger realized he needed some help.

He cried out, "Help me. I need some help. I need you to come quickly." In what seemed to be a painfully long time, his fiancee motored over to him in a little rubber boat. The photographer kept crying out for her to come quickly, fearing he would lose his grip and drop into the water. Finally she positioned the boat under him and gradually lowered him into the little boat. It was so obvious that this man was greatly relieved since he knew that he couldn't have rescued himself from his predicament.

I know that the lesson for us all is quite obvious -- we really get in trouble when we try to do things on our own. I guess it's that carnal nature we as Christ-followers continue battling. We want to still be somewhat independent, to not ask for help. But I know that my life gets awfully messy when I try to be a lone ranger. And every time I ask for others' help, when I admit my need and realize I cannot do this project by myself, God blesses me when I call on others.

What challenge have you faced lately where you recognized that if others hadn't intervened, you would have surely failed?

Jim