Three wolves™

Shared with permission Ange Drake. Written by her brother, Richard.
Man I’m so like this sometimes!

I love tramping. Or at least I believe I do. My brother-in-law went
tramping in the weekend and I’ll bet it was brilliant. I’ve seen his
photos from previous trips and they are incredible. Just the kind of
scenery that inspires me, speaks to me of God’s beauty, power, and transcendence,
and reminds me I am part of something far bigger than myself. But I was
thinking just now – when did I last go tramping? I can remember the
trip, a winter walk into the Takitimu range with good people, but when
exactly was that? It wasn’t last year, maybe it was the year before but I’m not
quite sure. And it made me think, do I really love tramping? Or do I just
like it a lot. Can I apply that powerful word that is so carelessly thrown
around these days – love? And I realized that if I really did LOVE
tramping then I would have done whatever it takes to go tramping at least once
in the last three months. But I haven’t. I haven’t done whatever it takes
to go tramping in the last three months and maybe never. That last trip was
suggested and organized by someone else. So I conclude that
actually, I just like tramping, rather a lot perhaps, but not in a motivated way.

Funny thing is I know I’ve ‘loved’ God that way at times. Not doing
whatever it takes to get near him. I’ve seen others do it too. They
like him rather a lot, but they rely on others to organize the meeting,
and can go a long time just thinking fondly of him – but with no immersion in
the experience of his person. Some of us even share photos – our
snapshots of God from long ago – forgetting that his wild beauty awaits us today.
Don’t love God like I love tramping – let his Spirit blow into your face,
disregard the blisters from seldom worn boots, and do whatever it
takes to find your way into his uncharted presence.