"Uphill"

When we’re headed downhill, it can be lots of fun,

No trouble with the effort, even if you run,

You still have to be careful, ‘cause that old gravity,

Can cause you to go too fast, or slip and fall you see.

I’ve found when life’s too easy, it mostly was downhill,

I had no real direction, not concerned about God’s will,

I’d slip and fall and stumble, and each time it got worse,

The gravity that pulled me, was leading to a curse.

And what is the solution, if that’s the way you go,

You gotta put the brakes on, and get ‘er stopped you know,

Turn back from the downhill, but know that if you do,

The way back home is uphill, and can be hard it’s true.

I find that going uphill takes muscles that are strong,

But when you start to use ‘em, get very sore ‘fore long,

Because I didn’t use them, when running the wrong way,

It takes some time to strengthen, and use them everyday.

But as the Good Lord promised, He knows just what we need,

To fight through every battle, and plant a righteous seed,

And when you find you’re winded, and need to take a breath,

His Spirit energizes and puts old self to death.

The power of endurance, the will to carry on,

The wonder of persistence, strong hope when trials are long,

All come ‘cause we are climbing, faith muscles grow until,

He calls us home to heaven, or comes when that’s His will.

“These trials will show that our faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold…” (1 Peter 1:7, NLT)

I never met a trial I liked. I never prayed, ‘Lord, can this challenge last longer so I’ll learn what I need to know.’ I have often prayed, ‘When can this be over?’ Truth is, life can be an uphill climb, especially when going through trials. I just got word this afternoon that the beaches have been closed here, as well as restaurants except for take-out orders, gyms, and pretty much anyplace people gather. The stores are still open, I guess because there’s room to stay six feet away from people. I’ve lived here since 1996, and they have never closed the beaches for any reason. The people who have lived here longer say it’s never happened, so this is a new experience altogether. And any way you cut it, it’s a trial. It’s a trial for people whose livelihood is tied in with our tourist industry. It’s a trial for all the restaurants. It’s a trial for the churches who can’t meet. It’s a trial in some way or another for all of us. And it’s uphill. But climbing uphill does something to you that downhill cannot: it makes you stronger. You might be thinking, “no, thanks, I can do without this kind of exercise.” But maybe we can’t, and God knows it. He didn’t cause this but He has allowed it, and what is He teaching us? Many things, I suspect. But one thing for sure is that when we rely on Him to help us, we get stronger through the climb.

Lord, give us strength, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Don Weller, donweller.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Don, and God bless you.