Easter Thoughts

"I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast.  And when I run I feel His pleasure."  

                                          Eric Liddell (Chariots of Fire)

That quote has stuck in my mind since I first saw the movie in 1981, particularly the last sentence, "And when I run I feel his pleasure."  To be clear, I am not built for running.  I am especially not built for running fast.  Truth be told, I am built much more like an old work horse than anything resembling a thoroughbred.  But I do like to run, and I have for most of my life.  It is true that I feel closest to God when I am out running with my dogs.  Or, short of that, when I am walking them along the Kettle River.  I can feel close to God when I'm in church to be sure.  I can feel close to him when I'm studying at my desk as well.  But truly, nothing compares to the closeness I feel when I am jogging down some dirt road, or walking in the woods.  For some reason, in those times I do feel his pleasure.

Well, I was walking my dogs, Abby and Hunter, along the river the other day.  Enjoying the beauty.  Talking to the Father.  Thinking about life.  About half way through the walk, I noticed that Abby was in the river, and she was struggling.  When I got down to where she was, I could tell that something was preventing her from getting out of the water, but I couldn't tell what it was.  As I grabbed her and tried pulling her out, she yelped and retreated to deeper water.  Since I am a tad slow mentally as well as physically, it took me a minute or two to realize that she had stepped on a beaver trap.  The weight attached to the trap wouldn't allow her to move, and since any movement caused pain, Abby was content not to move.  I did what I had to do.  I grabbed the wire attaching the trap to the shore, and began to pull the trap and Abby to me.  It hurt her, to be sure, but it was the only way to set her free.  Once I had her and the trap on the shore, I opened the jaws and pulled her out.  Fortunately, she had only caught her paw in the trap, and after running on three legs for awhile decided that there really wasn't enough damage not to run on all four.

On the walk back to the car, I reflected on Abby's little accident.  It occurred to me that way back in the Garden of Eden, a similar thing happened to Eve.  The enemy set a trap by saying, "You surely will not die!  For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."  We all know the story from Sunday School.  Eve stepped into the trap, and ate the fruit that God had forbidden them from eating.  When Eve brought the fruit to Adam, the first man could tell his wife had changed.  Adam had a choice.  He could refuse to eat the fruit, and keep the close fellowship he had with the Creator, or he could eat the fruit and become like his wife.  He looked at his wife, ate the fruit and walked into the trap.

That really is what Easter is all about.  The Creator's creation was trapped.  And the Creator came to set his creation free.  Ever since the first trap in the special garden, men and women have been stepping into traps set by the enemy, and ever since that time the Father has been working to set them free.

To be completely honest, I have stepped into a few traps myself.  Some of them I have seen, and some of them I haven't.  But regardless, just like I saw Abby's struggle, the Father sees mine.  He comes to where I'm at, draws me to himself and sets me free.  And just like with Abby, sometimes the extraction process can be painful, but the Father remains determined....and faithful.... and trustworthy.  And in the end, He sets me free.  Free to walk with him, and to fellowship with him.  And free to feel his pleasure when I run.