I feel free. I feel closer to God. It feels like an escape from everything. I know I can be close to God anywhere I go but it’s different when I’m out there. I can breathe. I can release. The wind is a hug from God.
The water washes away my worry and fears. The climb makes me feel closer to his strength, it reminds me that I am weak alone, but with him I can conqueror anything. I’m fearless out there. I’ve climbed mountains, trees, rocks, walls, I’ve walked across a tree in the middle of a lake not knowing what’s down there or how deep it was.
I love it. I simply love it. I love the not knowing what type of animal, insect, trail or adventure I’m going to run into. It’s unpredictable; it’s a break from the madness of routine and societal pressure and standards.
The silence.
The pureness of empty vibrations traveling through the woods follow me. It’s comforting. It teaches how to quiet my mind when I have so much going on at once. The quiet teaches gratitude and resilience.
My mind is the biggest thing I have to battle when I’m out there because you have to be in a space where you are cognizant of where you are and where you’re going, while also pushing down personal mental struggles. You have to see a vision of what’s next, be cautious of your surroundings and focus on a goal—to get out of there uninjured/alive or to reach a destination.
I enjoy the exercise. I like pushing myself physically. I like that feeling of exhaustion when it feels like I want to quit and I get that burst of fight to keep going—to apply this fight to other areas in my life.
I like the mistakes.
I’ve gotten lost on many trails and yet God has always directed me back to safety. Being out there increases my faith for sure. It has to. Anything can happen when I’m out there. I can think of hundreds of terrible situations I could have fallen into but he’s protected me every step of the way. I trusted that he would protect me. I trusted that he wouldn’t allow me to go too far, too deep or too wide outside of my skillset or knowledge realm. I trust him out there because that’s all I have. When there’s no service, no one with you, or clear direction (signs may be down, washed out, etc.) all you have is God to guide you.
I’m reminded that I don’t need anything but God.
It forces me to remove all of the distractions from my mind and focus on him and him alone.
Patience. It teaches me patience, I can’t always calculate how long a mile or 4 will take, so I have to walk and be patient until I arrive at the destination. There are times where I want to take short cuts and veer off to another seemingly shorter trail but I can’t, I have to implore patience. I have to wait on the lord. And sometimes that can be really hard, but when I’m outside there’s not really a choice. You either wait or try to do it on your own and that’s typically the hard way.
Peace.
God gives an unreal peace when I’m outside. It feels like a confident assurance of hope. It forces me to let go, to let go of what I can’t control and trust him in what I do control. His peace surpasses all understanding.