Adventure One: Windy Beginnings At Poppy Mountain

Heart’s pounding: just as much from anticipation as from hiking this mountain. What a day! What does God have in store for this life of mine? That is my main question. So little time so many questions that need to be answered. I would rather spend my time doing and moving forward than sitting and waiting for life to figure itself out. But- how: how do I figure it out? How do I know what I am supposed to do with myself? Why is life so up and down and frustrating? What does God say about all of this? More importantly, what does God say about me? Man- this view is beautiful. Lord, speak to my heart! Tell me that you know I am here and that you love me! Tell me- what do you want me to do? Where do you want me to go? A Creator this beautiful must be good…look at this! God- help me to trust in you, that you know what is going on in my life and that it is your heart to take care of me and to give me a future…that you hear the depths of my heart and that you want to and are responding to it. I love you! Help me to understand what loving you means…

These are just some of the thoughts that were running through our minds as we embarked on our first adventure. When I pulled up in the parking lot of The Highlands and got out of my van, I could feel the anticipation coming from myself and from the group gathered there, staring at their leader wondering where this all would take them. Cramming into a mini-van with a bunch of people who don’t know one another might sound like a grim prospect for some but to the Awaken the Adventure crew- it is just an exciting beginning on the road to great adventure and all that God has in store for us.

It is fun for me to keep from the crew our destinations! I like the element of surprise, sure – but more than gratifying my own personality, it is symbolic for something that I want us all to learn: to trust the Lord completely. Many times in this life, the Lord will tell you where to show up and what equipment you need to bring, but he won’t divulge your destination or promise you an exact time frame. That is because (I believe) that God is more interested in the journey of our callings than the moment of arrival. I mean, isn’t it the stuff that we work out and learn along the way that become the very tools we will need to handle and do the job once we get there? Of course, the ultimate destination that we desire is Heaven… but we must learn to live today fully, spending everything that we have for the sake of the cross. That is how we will get to our eternal destination.

The Poppy Reserve was no less gorgeous without the blanketed hillsides of Poppies. I mean- the view! So grand! Nine of us set out bravely on our hike- and I say bravely very seriously! I don’t know if any of you remember how windy it was Saturday, March 13th... but we sure do! Hiking lesson #1: Whatever the weather is like at your house, it will be ten to twenty times worse at the place of the hike. This is because you gain altitude when you hike and will usually start your hike at a higher altitude. So, if it’s cold here- it’s freezing there; if it’s hot here- it’s boiling there; if it’s windy here- it’s a monsoon there! It was so windy at the reserve that even the portable outhouses were blown over. Did that stop us? Nope! We marched right up those hills; right up to the top. We stopped to enjoy God’s glorious creation and to reflect and journal. Thanks to Aaron bringing his guitar, we even had a little background music. The Tehachapi Mountain Range and the Valley Buttes were strong and graceful- absolutely stunning. There is nothing like isolating yourself from the business of life and traffic and surrounding yourself with creation. I tell you- the Lord speaks clearer in the middle of creation.

On the way back down we paused to read Matthew 7:7-12 and Matthew 6:25-34 (in that order). After dissecting those verses, we talked about how sometimes we must do what is right out of sheer obedience when we don’t feel like it, but not as a way of life. Eventually- a transformation of mind and heart must take place. We must get to a point where we do what is right because we do feel like it; no- more than feelings- we do it because our inner man (woman) wants to. A challenge was made for the week- search your heart and reflect on the core of what’s going on inside you. The more we know about where we are at, the easier it is to know where to go from here. The destination doesn’t matter if you don’t even know your starting point.

The rest of the hike was filled with theological debate and fun. What can I say: we have a smart and hungry group and I LOVE IT!!

Alas, exhausted and wind torn (I think the exhaust was more from the wind than the hike!) we journeyed to the chili line at Souplantation to warm ourselves up! There we heard stories from some of Aaron’s overseas travels and we learned that Donald is an artist! Donald lovingly gave me one of his creations and it is currently hanging on my vision wall at my apartment. Thanks Donald!

Well- thank you all who stuck around to read this entire entry. A little long, but needed as it was our first adventure. And thank you to my fab Awaken the Adventure crew: Cindy, Donald, Carmen, Brandon, Aaron, John, Anthony and Matt. I love you!

Until next time: awaken!

-Rachel Rane