A Story In The Wind

Day Five of my Arizona journey was spent mostly inside.  It was a blustery day and quite cool, and since I was also working through a cold, I decided I could afford one day of inside time.

Day Five: An inside day

It’s bound to happen when you’re on vacation. You get sick and/or have a bad weather day, right? Well, apparently my grandson Noah kindly gave me his cold right before I left, and yesterday was a good day to stay inside since I was doing some hacking and coughing. No walking or hiking, although I did drive up to the Ballantine Trailhead like I mentioned I was planning to do in my last post.

Even though it was quite windy I figured that I would at the very least have a scenic drive there and back. So, a little after 7am I headed up the Beeline. I was right, of course. The views were phenomenal and I reveled in them as each passing mile brought me closer to my turn-off.

Then, I ran into a snag. As I pulled into the small dirt parking area of the Ballantine Trail, there was an old van with New Jersey plates already parked there very close to the entrance of the trailhead. Hmmmm… I also saw some movement in the back of the van, but no one about outside that I could see. If it were a newer vehicle, I’d just figure an early bird like me was wanting to get a head-start on the day. But it wasn’t a newer van, it was probably about 15 to 20 years old. And full of stuff. Almost like someone was living out of the van. My fight or flight antennae began to perk up as I looked around more carefully. I got out, locked my rental car, and walked toward the trailhead right behind the van. Made me uncomfortable, let me tell you.

There was low fencing blocking the entrance to the trailhead, and, for me, that was all I needed to get my buttsky out of there. And that’s what I did.

But the views, as I said, were fantastic, so, no worries.

I stopped at the grocery store and then at a hair salon to make an appointment to get my hair done.

Back at the condo, I spoke with a lender who specializes in condo loans, getting some excellent information to help me figure out just what is my best plan of action.

While I spent the rest of the day indoors, I finished writing a short devotional I had started a couple of days before.  In my online writing class with Flourish Writers, Jenny and Mindy are wonderful at instructing and steering you in the right direction for writing inspirational stories. I used some of their suggestions, and am pleased with my first, although short, devotional.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed meditating and praying on the scripture and researching.

Here it is:

Malachi 3:16-18

Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed his name. “They shall be mine,” says the LORD of hosts, “in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.”

Every time I read this passage of scripture it arrests me. I come to a full stop, back up, and read it again. And then again.

I love the way Chuck Smith, who was the Pastor of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California, defines what the fear of the Lord means. “The Bible says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom… The fear of the Lord is not a phobia type of fear that debilitates a person… But the fear of the Lord is a reverential awe as we stand in the presence of His greatness, of His glory, of His majesty, and of His power. We think of the greatness of the God who created this vast universe. We think of the wisdom of God who created all of the life forms, and we just sort of stand in awe of that greatness and power, and wisdom. That’s what the fear of the Lord is.”

Standing in awe of just who he is. Every time I hike in the desert or walk along the beach, I am in awe. When I look closely at the individual plants, and how intricately they are formed, and when I gaze on the ocean and listen to the dull roaring of the water crashing and retreating in an unending cycle, I am in awe. God speaks to us of his power and majesty in nature when we take the time to listen.

Have you ever felt, though, there were times when God wasn’t listening? That your prayers went nowhere? Malachi tells us very clearly that when we ‘esteem his name’ he pays attention.

When we respect and honor who he is, and we spend time in fellowship with others of like mind talking about and reminding each other of how wonderful he is, what does he say – “they shall be mine.”

Matthew Henry, that well-known Bible commentator, said this: “I get so excited when I think of God speaking about me in the personal, possessive pronoun. When God speaks of me as, ‘My son, My child, My servant.’ Oh, how I love God to speak about me with a personal, possessive pronoun. I belong to Him; I’m His.”

Who doesn’t love the idea of truly belonging to someone so powerful and wise?

When I was a little girl, I had a diary and I wrote things that were important to me in that little book of secrets. When I was older, I wrote in journals. Now, as an adult, I use my computer and write blog posts. All of these are ways I remember. I remember people and things and occasions. I remember so I can never forget.

I don’t know about you, but I love the idea of God having a ‘book of remembrance’ with my name in it and everything about me. Because if he took the time to write it down, then it means something special, right? Do you bother to write down things you don’t care about? I don’t.

And because of our faithfulness and love and how we ‘esteem his name’ he makes us his. I belong to the Creator of the universe who looks upon me as a special treasure.

Let’s end with one more nugget of gold from Matthew Henry. “You are His treasure, Peter said, ‘for we are His peculiar treasure.’ The Lord speaks of you as a treasure that was hid in the field, that He bought the whole field that He might take the treasure out of it.”

I don’t deserve this exalted status, but I surely appreciate it.

*******

And thus ends Day Five of my Arizona journey. See you tomorrow!

Day four:  The Search.  Where I write about mountains and condos and camaraderie.

My day started out early with a wonderful jog around the town, up and down some of my favorite streets. I love the wide side-walks and wide streets, giving the town a feeling of openness. The sun had just risen over the shoulder of Four Peaks (our special mountain here where amethysts were mined years ago) saying good morning.

Four peaks got its name because, well, it has four peaks. It’s a great landmark because it’s so unmistakable. The peaks are jagged looking, not rounded, as if God took his finger and drew a zig-zag across the top just for fun. It stands tall and proud, reveling in its special honor as personal sentinel for everyone in the valley.

Next on the list of things to do for the day was to look at some condos. Three very sweet and knowledgeable Realtors, Jaki, Nan, and Randee, accompanied me as we checked out one after another. I love ‘shopping’ like this with women because there’s an instantaneous sister-hood that happens. We ‘oooh’ and ‘ahhh’ together and give our opinions on the good and the bad of each one. It’s a community effort. I had a blast.

The first one was cute, but the patio was very small, although we all agreed that the huge oleander growing outside the dining area window was wonderful for privacy. The second one was spectacular which meant the first one was off the table as a possible. Bigger unit with a gorgeous kitchen (even though I don’t cook anymore), fantastic views of the mountains, including Four Peaks, although it faced the main road, so there was street noise but the patio was nice and big. The third and fifth condos were in this same complex, but the third had back views overlooking the wash (which I also love), with the McDowell mountains (not my favorites). The carpet was old and nasty, and the unit hadn’t been taken real good care of, so that was a maybe if I could get it for a good price. The fifth one was not even in the running, so we’ll not speak of it.

When we drove up to the third unit, it was obvious that the Realtor who put the listing in the MLS had lied about views. There clearly weren’t any so we didn’t even go in.

The fourth one, though, had the views to die for. Backing up to an Indian Reservation, you were at ground level with the wash, then as your eyes travelled upward, an unobstructed view of Four Peaks and the Superstitions in all their majesty. Spectacular! However, the floor plan was awful, and the condo had not been maintained very well. How’s that saying go – ‘rode hard and put away wet.”

So, anyway, some good things to chew on and I got some numbers on what I could get for rental income. We shall see.

Other than writing the blog post for the day, I took a day off from working on my book and will resume my efforts tomorrow.

I had planned on hiking the Ballantine Trial in the morning – about 21 miles up 87 (what they call the Beeline Highway) toward Payson and into the foothills of the mountains inside Tonto National Forest, but the wind has picked up considerably and with my contacts, and the dust in the air, it might not be a good idea. We shall see what’s it like in the ‘wee smas’, as the saying goes.

Three more full days to soak up the sun and warmth, peace and quiet of Arizona. I’m already asking God when I can come back – maybe to stay for good next time.

Onward and upward!