Maybe it is because I am aching for some warm temps, and I find myself daydreaming about a ride in my favorite spot on the planet.
But in this season of looking back and remembering when God has spoken, I was drawn back to something I wrote a few months ago.
I’m often reminded of a devotional I read a long time ago by Oswald Chambers. He talked about the importance of learning to live in the ordinary gray days according to what we saw on the mountain..jpg "Bike on mountain_gray")
That’s a great challenge for me because I love the mountains. For some reason, I think more clearly there. It is a great thing for me to leave business and stress behind and head to Colorado for the solitude, the silence, the fantastic beauty, and a great ride on the trail.
For many years I have biked down the No. 401 trail in Crested Butte, Colorado. It is a wild, remote, crazy beautiful spot between Crested Butte and Aspen. Right above Gothic pass, you have to push your bike up this single-track trail. After an aggressive stretch through a meadow, you emerge through some trees and you can see for miles down the valley to Crested Butte. On the other side, if you climb a little higher, you can see the Maroon Belle Mountain Range.
I’ve had many great moments at the top of that trail. I came to somewhat of a peace with the loss of my parents there. I have found needed clarity, wrestled with anger and dissappointment, and caught ideas and thoughts on my future up there. For whatever reason, I just feel closer to God there.
But I know i have to find a way to live the day to day in the flatlands, with the inspiration that I find there.
One thing I have to do, especially this time of year, is remind myself often about the whispers I heard from God in the mountains. It really helps me on these long, gray, and quiet, flat…winter days.
But come this summer, I am heading back to the 401.
