I lift my eyes to the mountains,  where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord,  The Maker of heaven and earth.     

Psalm 121: 1-2

As someone who has taken on skiing as an adult after very limited experience as a child and young adult, I feel like I’ve come a long way in the past eight years and enjoy more technical skiing than most.  This has not come without some trials and tribulations, for certain.  I think most of the “skiing” I did early on would be considered “stopping”, and would feel the effects of this in my sore feet at the end of the day.

Recently, I had the fantastic opportunity to accompany our high school students on their Montana retreat.  Over the course of these three days, we were treated to outstanding skiing and snowboarding conditions, and had spent some wonderful time together in small and large groups on and off the mountain. 

Our first day of skiing was at Bridger Bowl, and it snowed all day. The snow conditions were amazing- deep, soft powder-though the visibility was hampered by flat light that made it somewhat difficult to discern variations in the terrain.  I was skiing not far from a lift, somewhat hesitantly and “stopping” as I did early in my skiing career, not trusting my skills.  From the chair lift, a young man yelled down to me, “SKI THAT, MAN!!”, referring to the wide-open snow field that lay before me.  And I did.  And it was awesome. 

My faith journey has some rough yet interesting parallels to my path of becoming a skier, and in fact, I feel they intersect and compliment one another in some respects.  I was born into a family that loosely practiced a Catholic faith, primarily due to my father having a strong Catholic upbringing, and after my parents divorced, I spent little time in a church other than weddings, funerals and holidays.  While in middle school, I once read the Bible cover to cover, and occasionally would attend retreats with my friends who attended a Lutheran Church. 

However, it was not until I met my wife, Susan, that I began to embrace my faith, and up until then, spent a great deal of time “stopping” my faith, and looking for reasons not to believe in God.  Over our 20+ years together with God, I have learned to trust my faith, to not fear falling in other aspects of my life, and to not fear death. When I was asked to write this Lenten devotional, I struggled a bit to start. Again, I was blessed by Susan, who suggested Psalm 121, which, to me, is the “SKI THAT, MAN!!” rally cry of the Bible to help guide our faith and our lives. The Lenten season is often associated with giving up something, and in this season,  I invite you to give up your fear of falling, and embrace your faith and trust in God.

I did. And it is awesome.

Prayer: Lord, please help us to relinquish our fear and fully engage with our faith knowing that you are an all-knowing and enduring support for us.  Amen!

Marty Richards