Matthew 10:29,  “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.”

“What good does it do the sparrow if God sees it fall? It still falls.”  Mark Twain

I finally arrived in the Catskills mountains, a lot of twist and turns but old Madge got me there.  Madge  is the name my study partner gave to our Magellan GPS.  At times I cannot figure out what old Madge is up to. Still if  she says to go left, I go left, just like Sparky the Wonder Dog goes left when his master tells him to go left and low and behold here I am at a little cabin in the Catskills mountains, all alone just God and I and Madge.  This is what is called a writer’s cabin, and although I have a manuscript due to Harper Collins in January, writing is not my primary purpose for being here, I am beginning a silent retreat where God is going to show off and He sure started this adventure off with a bang, just to remind me as to my purpose for being here.

I arrived at the cabin with my car’s gas tank on empty.  I figure before I do anything I need to pick up some supplies for the week to feed myself and get some gas to feed the car.  So I pull out faithful Madge, hit points of interest and type in gas as that is my primary interest right now. Turns out the closest gas station is ten miles away.  I look at Madge and I look at my gas gauge and figure it is going to be a close one. So I head off to my left just as Madge commanded.  Although something in me told me to go right, I ignored that still small voice and went left. I turned where Madge told me to turn, turned around when Madge told me to turn around, made a sharp right turn when Madge told me to make a sharp right turn and the next thing I knew I was driving down a dirt road.  I began to wonder just why a gas station would be located off a dirt road, but just like Sparky the Wonder Dog obeys my neighbor’s every command, I continued down the dirt road until it ended at a cliff overlooking a beautiful display of God’s creation. Madge is still calmly instructing me to proceed another quarter mile and make a right turn. Looking out over the ravine I figured that would put me right in the creek that I could barely make out way down below.

I looked at my gas tank and realized I had no idea where a gas station was at or how I was going to find one.  Madge appeared to have lost it and was directing me to another dirt road. I assumed Madges’s satellite had been hit by some sun spot and knocked her crazy so I chose to ignore her and head back to the main road. I figure if I just kept going down this road I was bound to hit a gas station.  All the while I sensed God pointing out His creation, wanting me to enjoy each little mountain view, every stream,  but I was just too worried about running out of gas before I found a gas station that I had could not enjoy anything at this point especially to pay attention and admire God’s little gifts.  The road I was on seems endless with no towns or gas stations in sight. On top of that I was totally lost, even if I found a gas station in time, I had no idea how I was going to find my way back to my cabin.

Then my attention was diverted to the forest of trees that were  ahead of me, as far as the eye could see. I was surprised to find that the leaves had started to turn color. On my way up here I was concerned that I would be too early to see the fall change, but I found that I was just at the beginning.  I began to reflect how each leaf, when green, had just one job to perform and that was to turn carbon dioxide into oxygen so we can breathe and live.  That little green leaf’s total life’s job is to just perform this one function which is vital to sustaining our lives. When that little leaf has finished its job it dies after just a few months of life.  If I were to pluck it from a tree prematurely, it would turn brown and die, but when left on the tree to die its natural death it will give us one last gift as it completes its life cycle and that is to turn into a glorious display of color to remind us of the beauty of its and our Creator.

I stopped to think about a time almost four years ago when I suffered a serious affliction and came close to passing through this life.  At the time I did not care and was almost disappointed that I survived. Yet, I told God that if he did keep me alive then whatever time He gave me I would use it for His sake. As I saw the glorious colors beginning to appear on the branches of the trees I felt God was telling me that if I had left this life three years ago I would have just turned into a brown leaf, but by allowing God to keep me here for the time He planned for me to stay then when I pass from this earth, I will leave behind something that will show the glory and beauty of God.

About this time I snapped out of my meditation and thought, “Hooky smokes! I am almost out of gas and there is no…”  I looked up and there was a Sonoco station.  Not only that but there was a sign indicating that the little town where my cabin could be found was just  five miles down the road from where the gas station stood. Had I made a left turn rather than a right turn (against the wishes of Madge) I would not have gone thirty miles out of my way.  But then again I would not have started my week of silence without God’s first lesson for me and that was to remind me that I am on this earth for only as long as He wishes and if I stay around for the duration He would allow me to leave behind something to declare his glory and beauty.

God knew Madge would fail me, just as He knows the fall of a sparrow. Even though I was trusting in Madge with all my heart and leaning not to my understanding, in all my ways I was acknowledging Madge and she failed to direct my path.  You see a sparrow was a first century version of Madge.  hey have homing instincts and when someone would take a long journey away from home, he would purchase some little sparrows to take with.  Then when the pilgrim began his journey home, he would release the sparrow and follow him home.  Unfortunately, sparrows are very fragile birds and would sometimes die in flight. The poor journey man would face a moment like I faced with Madge having her nervous breakdown. Yet, God was reminding me that He is aware of even the loss of our direction, the fall of a sparrow or a sunspot disrupting our GPS and yet, He will never fail, and He will pick up the slack.

So I travel back to my little cabin to begin this journey into the heart of God to explore its beauty and majesty and perhaps, like Moses, to see His glory that I might know Him One Hebrew word for knowing is yada  which is to know so intimately  that you willing to share your secrets. In such yada, perhaps God will share His secrets with me this coming week.