EPILOGUE – Colorado Expedition

It’s been a month since we left families, friends, jobs, and reasonable sanity behind to travel to the mountains with hopes of finding ourselves… and our God.

Divine destiny met us there. Little did we know what God had in store for us, but as did Abram-of-old we took the first step and set out into the west for a spiritual destination that was then unknown.

I honestly believed that the trip would be difficult and require physical stamina and exertion… but I was not expecting a task that would nearly destroy my body on multiple occasions. It was above and beyond anything that I imagined it could be. It pounded my into submission almost immediately and did not let up for the entirety of the week. I still have nightmares about the pain and struggle.

When it had broken me physically, the mountain moved on in hopes of breaking my will. It succeeded near the summit of Blanca when I began crying and could not stop for at least five or ten minutes. I’ve rarely had emotional releases like this… the last one came years ago at the hands of ungodly bosses in my last ministry.

Spiritually the week was nothing I had intended it to be but everything that I had hoped it would be. At the time, I don’t think that we fully understood what God was doing in the midst of us… and within us. Only after we returned from Colorado did I really begin to see the fruits of the groundwork laid. Guys have been following through on their commitments, holding each other accountable, lifting one another up…. in short, truly acting like a band of brothers. This type of follow-through had been my hope and prayer, but honestly in my wildest dreams I never imagined that it would actually take place. In many ways, I am a doubting Thomas.

Why does it always seem to catch me off-guard when God comes through?

And come through He did, and has. Multiple times during the week we saw specific prayers answered in specific ways. Even post-Colorado we have seen specific prayers answered in specific ways. God continues to amaze me. I’m not sure my prayer life has ever been as vibrant or exciting.

One of my realizations on the trip was that I’d not been leading out in my relationship with my wife in regards to prayer. Ince that time we’ve prayed together every evening and God has been answering prayers left and right… and nearly as important, its brought us closer together with each other, and God. This was probably the greatest battle I have fought and won in regards to Colorado.

The other amazing spiritual gift God gave me was a new brother in the fight, Alex. We became quick friends in the mountains, but the real joy has come from staying in touch since then. I think men fail in life because of their unwillingness to rely on anyone else but themselves. When men learn to open themselves to other men and rely on each other for support, accountability, prayer, and leadership then the Kingdom of God is opened wide in their hearts and midst allowing miraculous things to happen. Alex has become a warrior in the fight and one of the few men who I count it an honor to trust my spiritual life to. He has definitely become one of my band of brothers.

And really, a band of brothers is what we have all become.

In church I can catch the eye of someone that traveled to Colorado, and without words or facial expression there is an understanding… a look of knowing. I can’t explain it, but I think it happens when you know someone so intimately that you can peer into their soul just by looking into their eyes. We have a special bond, a special relationship that no one around can understand (or probably even see). I expected that it would not last, but it has.

Sunday, the guys coordinated prayer for a member of the group that is facing cancer. Between the services we waited 45 minutes for him to show up, then spent 15 minutes laying hands and praying for him. Just this week several of the guys got worried about the seeming absence of one of the fourteen from the trip. They began calling him and re-involving themselves in his life. What an amazing picture of Christian brotherhood!

For all of us, I am not sure we expected the impact that Colorado would have in our hearts and lives. I’ll still catch myself looking off into the distance on occasion, dreaming about that week. I’ll see a picture, hear a name, or read a note and instantly I am back there. Initially I don’t think any of us ever wanted to see that mountain again. Now, as time passes, I am filled with a longing to be back there.

And now, even if I could go back, I could never go back. Those experiences and that group cannot be recreated. I must resign myself to reliving it in my heart and mind. And while some may think it odd or erroneous to relive past glory… in this situation I find it refreshing and rewarding. I will not long forget the week that God met with 18 of us in the mountaintops of the Colorado wilderness. To remember it is to rebirth in my soul a filling of the Holy Spirit the likes of which i have rarely had.

And so, the journey continues.

The summit is at the bottom of the mountain and I believe that immensely.

I am sure I will be back in Colorado again someday, and I do hope to climb Blanca again… this time with my wife. There are talks and plans for another excursion next year, and i hope that we are able to pull another one together. But whatever happens, I will always have the memories of this landmark experience in my life.

And life goes on from here, as I daily strive to not be content with the summits of the past but rather push forward to great heights and victories tomorrow and beyond.