from the mountain to the valley

"And how blessed all those in whom you live,
whose lives become roads you travel;

They wind through lonesome valleys,
come upon brooks, discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain!

God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain,
and at the last turn—Zion!

God in full view!"

- Psalm 84:5-7

I just took part of the most amazing women's retreat... it was the first retreat our church has ever put on & the first retreat I've ever been part of planning...

The planning was a journey of love really... of prayer... of scripture... of team building... of growing in leadership... of more prayer... of reading... of writing... of relationship building... of even more prayer...

There were so many beautiful God things that happened & I came home on a mountain top kind of spiritual high. I've experienced these kinds of sweet times before & I am so grateful for the way God gives us time & opportunity to come apart & rest a while... Retreating does something for the soul. The worship. The laughter. The tears. The relationships. The encouragement. I came home without real words. Just me... A backpack full of dirty clothes. Three bags of my favorite popcorn. & a heart overflowing. 

& then... before I could even find the time to really process the gloriousness of it all, real life happened.
The very next day.

I'm not gonna lie. I had a little cry. I wanted to stay on the mountain a while longer. I longed to feel the cool breeze on my face. To hear the quiet. To feel the peace of that place. To see the beauty of it all. 

Trouble is... as I look out over the valley. I see the place I want to go next. & in order to get there, I gotta move. I have to climb down off my perch & descend into the valley. Where there is pain. Where there is sadness. Where the real work takes place.  

So today. I picked myself up & began the climb down. I'm not alone. There are others here climbing. Some are beaten up & bloodied. They have skinned knees & scuffed up elbows. Some have haunted eyes & tear streaked faces. Some are like me. With bandaged wounds. Hearts full & overflowing. Spirits renewed. I know what I have to do know. It's time. So I reach out. I pull someone up. I look deep into a injured soul. & I tell them. I'm here. To walk along side with them. Don't fear the valley I say. We will tackle it. Together.

"It is so rare in this world to meet a trustworthy person who truly wants to help you,

and finding such a person can make you feel warm and safe,

even if you are in the middle of a windy valley high up in the mountains." 

-Lemony Snicket, Horseradish