Lessons from the Mountain

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2

Three weeks ago I had an opportunity to travel to Ireland and make a trip to Croagh Patrick, which is regarded as a Holy Mountain by the Catholic church. History says that it was on this mountain that St. Patrick fasted for 40 days in 441 AD. Now days, it is one of the pilgrimages that devout Catholics make once a year on the last Sunday of July, known as Reek Sunday. Thousands of people (over 20,000 by some estimates this year) come to climb the mountain, believing that the pain and suffering of doing so will pay the price of their penance to the Lord. It is not uncommon to see people climbing with bear feet that are bloody and bruised, as there is a belief that this will bring extra blessings.

I decided that I too would climb a portion of the mountain, but not for the same reasons as the majority of those around me. I believed that God had a lesson he was wanting to teach me and it turned out He actually had a few.

As I climbed I was overcome with the thoughts of “why am I doing this?” Having sat behind a computer desk for much of the past year hasn't done much to prepare me for climbing a 2500 ft. mountain. To make matters worse, I had my backpack on, loaded with many pounds of camera equipment. Many places in the path were nothing but loose gravel and sharp rocks. People were slipping and falling all around me, which is a bad situation. I couldn't get the words of Jesus out of my mind which say, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Matt 11:28-30 It was heart breaking to see so many people laboring and struggling to climb this mountain having believed that their suffering was something God required of them.

About half way up the mountain the trail narrowed drastically, and got much steeper. People were beginning to slip and fall with more regularity. During one of the many breaks that I needed to catch my breathe, I noticed that just off to the side of the trail was a large flock of sheep. Typical Ireland!! I laughed as I realized the irony that these sheep were enjoying a nice day eating grass, and didn't appear to have any struggles climbing the steep slopes. Once again the scriptures resonated in my mind, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:6 But the words of Jeremiah 50:6 describe the scene even better where he says, “My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold.”

At the base of the mountain there were many Christian groups distributing tracts and literature along with a variety of other evangelistic materials. As I observed their work and the love for these lost sheep heading up the mountain, I recalled the passage in Isaiah 52:7 which says; “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, 'Your God reigns.'" I noticed that many of the climbers were taking the tracts being handed to them and I even noticed people reading them on their way to the top of the mountain. Some of the Christian volunteers I talked to said that many people had been receptive to the tracts that were being handed out. My prayer is that the seeds sown that day will fall on fertile soil and that many might come to a saving knowledge of Jesus and the power of his ultimate sacrifice for our sins upon the cross which paid the price for our sins once and for all.

An Overdue Update

Wow, a lot has happened since my last post. This past June, I accepted a new position in OMS serving within the communications department. In my new role, I'll be leading up a team that is responsible for all the audio and visual productions for OMS. Many of the videos that OMS produces are used for fund raising by our overseas missionaries. Generally, our missionaries come home every 5th year to raise money so they can return overseas and work for 4 years. While they are home they speak in many settings including churches and homes where it is useful for them to have a video presentation they can make showcasing their ministry.

In addition to funding videos, the communications department also produces informational and recruitment videos. In the coming months, we will be working on a major informational video for ECC (Every Community for Christ) as well as a new corporate video for OMS. Hopefully these videos will effectively communicate the vision, goals and direction of OMS to those who are unfamiliar with our organization.

Aside from producing videos, I hope to travel once or twice a year and continue to photograph and video the work of our missionaries throughout the world.

All in all, I'm glad that I have a very direct part in helping our missionaries raise support so they can do the work that God has called them to. I also look forward to helping OMS share its message of what God is doing around the world.