For His Glory: Fearing God in Montana's Mountains

My family recently went on vacation to Glacier National Park in Montana...

David, Doug, Dad, Hannah, Caleb, Mom

We've been home for a week, but I just found a chance to write and I'm taking it! This was a bit of a different family vacation for the Dagenhart clan. We usually end up at the beach or local NC mountains. There've been a few variations through the years...we tried Disney World once (Dad vowed never to go back again) and we navigated our way through Washington DC (some of the oldest members of the family had difficulty with the metro routes). When I heard that we were going to a national park in the northwest to hike all day long I was a bit curious as to how that would turn out. I also wished I'd kept up my workouts from the World Race days.

Anyhow, after a quick flight to Atlanta and one to Kalispell, MT, we were renting a car and driving the remaining hours to the park. For the past year of my life I have traveled many, many miles in many different ways. My squad flew from continent to continent, crossing several countries and oceans as we went. I always loved the days when we were able to take a plane instead of spending hours on a train or bus; flying was a luxury. Last week when I found myself on the 5 hour flight from Atlanta to Montana I was surprised to realize my new nervousness at being in the air. I couldn't really focus on my book or the Olympics on my mini TV. I kept glancing out the window at the clouds below and the mountains even farther below. There was a sense of panic as my mind thought of all the ways the plane could go down, followed by huge frustrations at my childish fears. What is wrong with me? I'm a world traveler! This is ridiculous.

I sat tight and finished the flight in silence. It felt nice to be on the ground. Shaking off the weirdness of my new phobia, I got in the car as we headed for a grocery store (the closest one for many miles!) and then on to our cabin. It was one of those nice places out in the middle of nowhere with a sweet view of trees, countryside and wildlife. The TV didn't work (kind of a bummer to miss the olympics), there was no internet access and barely any cell reception. It was nice not to have the pressure or temptation of technology.

My cell phone did serve one important purpose...the alarm clock. Each day we got a fairly early start out to the park and onto the mountain trails. We all had our hiking boots, backpacks, bear spray (there were Grizzlies and Black bears roaming!), along with our water bottles and trail mix. Most of the trails were nice and moderate in difficulty. Toward the middle of the week we enjoyed a few hours on the river as we floated down in a raft. Class II and III rapids look much less intimidating after the Nile, but the water was refreshingly cold.

Goofing off while waiting to get started.

After rafting (a break from walking so much) I promised my brother David I'd hike on whatever trail he wanted. He's the adventurer, the planner of the family. He'd been to Glacier before and knew the best things to see and do. The next day we were preparing for a 10.3 mile hike. We drove to the end, parked and rode a shuttle to the starting point. What started out as a nice, shady hike moved out into the open with lots of wild flowers and a great view of the surrounding mountains. As we kept going, David pointed out the mountain ahead. "We're going over that one."

My reaction (internally of course): It looks a little steep but if everyone else can do it, I certainly can.

We kept hiking and reached the incline. There were lots of switchbacks as the trail was fairly steep and it was a bit intimidating to see loose rocks along the sides of the trail. Towards the top I quit looking out as it was safer to just stare at the ground. It was getting to be lunch time and the plan was that we'd stop at the top to eat. There was sure to be a good view of the scenery stretching out below as far as the eye could see. After hours of hiking, we finally made it to the top. Mom and I pulled up the rear as I stopped to take a few pictures here and there.

When the trail bent to the right at a place where two mountains came together, I suddenly turned into a not-so-happy-camper (or hiker rather). David, Doug, Caleb and Dad were all sitting leisurely on the trail a few yards off starting to dig into their packs for lunch. I stopped and sat where I was. Let me just tell you where I was...in the minds of my family members we were in a beautiful place with an outstanding view of God's great creation....in my mind we were on the side of an ominous mountain looking down into the face of death. You see, the path was maybe five to six feet wide with a tall mountaintop to the right and a drop to sudden death on the left. There were points on the hike that I thought I'd probably just end up paralyzed if I slipped, there was no such hope with this spot.

The snow is much farther below the ledge that juts out
in the bottom of the picture...What a view!!!

After a few minutes I traveled down a bit farther to wider and safer ground!

Needless to say, for me, this was not the best place to eat lunch. I had a mini panic attack, somewhat because of the height and danger but mostly because of my frustration at being afraid. After calming down and moving forward it got a little better, until we reached the ice. There was a big patch of ice covering the trail where we had to cross and hope not to slide down and off another cliff. I got a little more agitated here. I usually joke around all the time anyway, even when I'm nervous, so I had to actually admit that I didn't enjoy the hike at some moments. There may have been a few death threats hurled at our guide (David), but luckily I didn't have to carry them
out.

After reaching the safety and comfort of the car there came a sense of relief coupled with accomplishment. Reflecting back to the different points in the hike, I was able to catch a few revelations about the Lord.

When I was sitting on the ledge at the top of the mountain I was afraid of falling, of meeting my untimely end there. The size of the peak and the vast distance between myself and the ground below was overwhelming and uncomfortable. As I kept walking and exploring I realized that the mountain was indeed great and worthy of caution on my part. It wasn't a vicious rock seeking to throw me to my death, it didn't try to shake me off or laugh maliciously as I almost tripped and lost my footing on the path; yet, the danger was there if I didn't choose to respect where I was.

Gaining a little confidence and posing for a picture.

I finally got a bit of insight into what it means to "fear the Lord". Isn't he my Savior, Redeemer, Friend and Father? What does it mean to fear the Lord? The Lord God is magnificent and mighty. He is immensely beautiful and wonderful to behold. He is great and significant, where we are small and insignificant. He cannot ever fail, fall, lose, or be defeated. He is to be feared...and worshipped in reverence.

On the mountainside in Montana I saw the greatness of the Lord and the extreme insignificance of little human Hannah. While He is to be respected and honored (like the trail at the mountain), he does not wish to harm us. We are meant to marvel at his majesty, not melt in fear. If I let my fear (awareness) reach hysteria, I could have stopped all together and stayed paralyzed in that spot. It is unrealistic to fear God as One who would wait for us to fail and then punish us severely. He is not ruthless, he is rich in love. My fear was a reverence for the mountain, a realization of it's great power and presence. As long as I followed the path as I should, I was open to enjoy the view. God is much the same way. We should revere Him and acknowledge His power and presence. When our relationship with Him is obedient and healthy, there's nothing to fear. When we see Him for Who He is we'll be in awe and express thankfulness for being able to experience the wonder of His majesty.