UNFATHOMABLE HEIGHTS

Recently Mike and I returned from a 10-day road trip to the eastern Sierra Nevada mountains and Yosemite. Every year when we do this trip, we try to visit new places. This time, we stayed in the town of Lone Pine, which lies in the shadow of Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States. In this area are many mountains over 12,000 feet in elevation, and the scenery is often breathtaking in beauty. There was a meadow that Mike wanted to explore near Lone Pine called “Horseshoe Meadow”. The road leading to this meadow could be seen from way down below in the valley as a double Z of switchback roads zig zagging their way up the side of a mountain. The long drive up the eastern escarpment of the southern Sierra via the paved Horseshoe Meadow Road is an adventure in itself. The road rises from 4,000 feet in the arid Owens Valley to the timberline forests at Horseshoe Meadow at 10,000 feet. As we began the drive up this road, I realized that there were hardly any guardrails, and only a couple of feet of pavement were between us and gravity’s grasp. In all honesty, by the time we were near the top, I was terrified. The dramatic view from that height threw me into survival mode, and it was all I could do not to panic. And yet at the same time, the view was riveting and beautiful. It was hard to fathom that we were 6,000 feet above the valley floor. I could not comprehend such height. It was too much for me. I am reminded of a scripture in the bible that says,..”that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what [is] the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God (Ephesians 3:17-19). The breadth, length, depth and HEIGHT of God’s love is even greater than the dizzying heights that I experienced. And this altitude encounter once more reminded me of His great love which is higher than any earthly heights.

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