Ziplining is a Metaphor for Christ #FaithJourney

This past weekend, I embarked on an experience unlike any other. I took on an adventure trail with a few of my closest gal pals, and it took everything out of me. I thought it took everything in me, too, but little did I know I was about to embark on an extreme #FaithJourney.

GoApe is a treetop adventure course that takes us, thrill-seekers, through gorgeous foliage HUNDREDS of feet in the air. *nervous laugh* Throughout the six main obstacles, we climbed trees, walked tight ropes, carried our limp bodies over major roadways, swung like Tarzan and Jane, and most commonly, landed in dirt and got our behinds handed to us… for FOUR hours. (It really should have taken two hours, but we “enjoyed the view" lol.)

The grace we actually lacked when landing. :( Sorry, Gech! I told you think is my fave photo!

I was so excited for this adventure trail. I walked in there with an “S” on my chest, thinking that since I’ve gone sky diving, this was about to be a walk in the park. I assumed this would just be a more scenic, and enjoyable Spartan Race concourse. I was about to find out!!

Now, let me give you a little background on my history with sky-high adventures. I have not always been the adrenaline junkie that you see today, believe me be! I am actually NOT a fan of heights. I wouldn’t go as far as to say I am deathly afraid, but, at one point in my life, I was pretty darn close. I firmly believe that we should take our fears in life, and work to overcome them. At least, that is my lease on life. I actively work to overcome my fears. As I am writing this, I am happy to say that I don’t have any earthly fears anymore.

Circa, my senior trip to Disney World, “The Happiest Place on Earth,” I had never been more unhappy. My grandmother passed almost as soon as my plane took off. It was one of the worst experiences of my life, and it changed a lot for me in the months to come, and even to this day. I use this experience as a chronological marker as to when I stopped fearing life. Everything felt different. The air, my tears, a warm embrace, even the words that came out of my mouth. There is a certain type of catharsis that you just can’t achieve at times, in moments of tragedy. That week in Florida catapulted my #FaithJourney.

One of the main attractions to GoApe, is the ziplines that feel like you’re whizzing through the air for the length of a football field. Believe me when I say a lot of expletives were yelled up there, but, above all else, a lot of prayers were said. “Let go and let God,” was our mantra. This kind of goes back to my last post about being calm in the inevitable. We had to put our faith in two hooks, and a few wires that looked like they could barely hold the weight of a newborn. But, they did. We knew in our heart of hearts that if we hooked ourselves in right, we could never fall, we could never stray too far from the tree, and we wouldn’t diverge from the path. All we needed was crazy FAITH. And, as we kept climbing higher and higher, our legs got weaker, or arms were tight, we earned a few bumps and bruises, and even when we screamed, “I can’t do this,” or “I WANT TO GO BACK,” that is when faith stepped in.

You see, when you have full faith in Christ, you put the weight of your world in his hands. Your worries, your sorrows, your mistakes, your prayers, your burdens, your joys, your prides, hopes, aspirations and more- your ENTIRE WEIGHT is with Him. You are putting your weight in something you cannot see. Similar to those wires that we could see, we had to trust that we followed the instructions, strapped ourselves in perfectly, adhered to proper form, and trusted in the threshold of those wires that His will would be our way.

I had the best time with my gals, and real tears were shed (maybe it was just me, or maybe it was just the wind), and inhibitions were released. The #FaithJourney that the adventure trail put me on gave me a renewed lease on life. It sharpened the “S” on my chest, and right now, in the moments I thought I couldn’t, I don’t see anything I can’t do. Just when I thought it took everything out of me, the experience put so much more in me.