Abundant Life

There, at the top of the slope, I stood, my nose already a rosy pink from the cold. Tighter and tighter I held on to the poles until not even an atom could get between my fingers and the plastic handles. The burning in my leg muscles had long since gone numb, so nothing stood between my brain and the command to “GO!” One deep breath - maybe my last - and I pushed off. Immediately I regretted my decision to try a more advanced hill. After a mere fifty feet I picked up speed that I was not sure I could control. Yet, by some miracle I maintained my composure.

The entire world seemed to be coming together in one glorious symphony, playing me down the mountainside. The sky turned a stunning shade of baby blue, clouds rolled away, birds chirped, and animals came from behind the trees to cheer me on. Already I had conquered half of the slope. Life was beautiful and I was in the center. The melody of the world began to climax, announcing my triumph. Louder and louder it swelled until my skis sliced the air and a piercing crash of cymbals played me flat on my back in the snow. The blue sky was suddenly filled with stars. Rabbits fled, squirrels laughed and birds screeched off into the distance.

My world was upside-down. The reality of what had just happened came to me as hundreds, maybe thousands, of other skiers breezed past, heartlessly ignoring my plight. I was left out in the cold. As the tears froze on my cheek I knew there was only one thing I could do…put on my best damsel-in-distress face and wait for the next knight in a ski jacket. One-by-one they came from every direction and kept on going. The minutes passed as my situation grew increasingly dire. A dozen failed attempts to stand up wore out my knees and pushed me closer to the edge of the cliff and impending doom. I flopped back in the snow and prayed for my misery to end.

As I bade farewell to hope I caught a glimmer of something coming down the hillside. It approached quickly and before long it skidded to a stop right below me. So much time had passed since I had seen another human being that at first I thought it was some strange animal, possibly from Narnia. I stared at it, wondering whether its intentions were good or evil. “Need some help?” it asked, and I knew I had been rescued! “My name is Matt,” he said, helping me to my feet. “O, kind Sir,” I gasped, “I am forever in your debt! How could I ever…?” but before I could finish my declaration my skis were sending me down the slope once again.

Although I was sad I had not properly thanked my rescuer, nothing could push aside the joy of knowing I would soon be reunited with my family and friends at the base of the mountain. I only hoped I would arrive in time to call off the search party. Finally I came safely to a stop and everyone ran to meet me. Adrenaline still coursed through my veins as I exclaimed, “Let’s do that again!”

Several lessons can be gleaned from this story. “Wherefore, let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” Or perhaps, “Wherefore, lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.” However, the lesson I learned was a beautiful picture of God’s love for us. Many aspects of life are not necessary for living. The color of the sky, the sound of birds, the feeling you get when flying down a mountain on skis, even the feeling of crashing in the snow. They are all things that we could have survived without…and yet, purely for our enjoyment, God created them anyway. O, to see the smile on God’s face when His creation makes us smile! “I am come that they might have LIFE, and that they might have it MORE ABUNDANTLY.”