Sharing the Mountains

Sir Edmund Hillary is credited with being the first person to summit Mount Everest.  He said, “Human life is far more important than just getting to the top of a mountain.”

Well-spoken.

So…we went to the top of the mountain with friends, and we happened to run into more friends when we got there, so we shared the mountains together.

This also led to a friendly game of paintball.  The dads and the kids played, and Keira and I peered through the chain-link fence.

Kylie, Karis, and Caleb suited up.  

Quite the battlefield.

 

All good things must come to an end. 

So after roasting marshmallows, playing late-night games, making funny videos, rolling down snow-covered hills, and eating a lot of junk food, it was time to head down the mountain.

At least I think that's where we are heading???

Is there civilization down below?

Oh my goodness, yes!
All of these people were waiting in line to come up on the teleferic on their day off (Friday).

No time to leave like the present.

Plus, it happened to be my birthday.

My family surprised me by meeting up with some friends at the same restaurant where we had Thanksgiving and ordering milkshakes.

I think Keira liked the look of hers.

My friend told the chef I liked cheesecake, and he made this presentation for me.

 Yes, we all love the mountains, and sometimes coming back down is hard.

But...

“There are far better things ahead than the ones we leave behind.” – C.S. Lewis

And this is why we come down. 

There is more work to be done.

Onward and Upward.

Spiritually, mountaintops are a great place to see the might and glory of God and feel His presence, but as we all know...it's in the valleys where we stretch and grow and begin to look more like Him.

“Everybody wants to reach the peak, but there is no growth on the top of a mountain. It is in the valley that we slog through the lush grass and rich soil, learning and becoming what enables us to summit life’s next peak.” -Andy Andrews

January 3, 2019