Camp Sasakwa

Isaiah 43: 1-2

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! 2“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you. 

When I was a Boy Scout, one of the rewards I got was called a merit badge. There were many merit badges which I could earn. Some were easy, such as cooking, camping, knot tying, and other tasks which I already loved to do. Some required a lot more work. There were over 100 merit badge which a Scout could earn and you wore them proudly on a sash with your uniform.

For me, the hardest merit badge I had to earn was Lifesaving. Lifesaving required a person to demonstrate not only that you were a good swimmer, but that you could rescue someone who was drowning, or in my case, pretending to drown.

Here’s the problem. I don’t like to swim. I was never very good at it. And I’m still not. You know the popular phrase “sink or swim”? I’m a “sinker”.

So, when it came to demonstrating that I could rescue someone drowning, I had no idea what I was in for. Trust me. If you are drowning, I should not be your last hope.

At Camp Sasakwa, Oklahoma, in 1970, I was a 5’6”, 140 lb. blonde haired, blue eyed teen who avoided lake water. Swimming pools were OK, but if I couldn’t see the bottom, I didn’t like getting in water that was deeper than I am tall. And, that is exactly what they were asking me to do. Swim out 100 yards to a counselor in this lake, who was pretending to be drowning, use the skills I was taught to turn him on his back, put my arm around his neck and swim him back to safety. Sounds easy enough. After all, I know how to dog paddle. Four steps and we’re done.

But this counselor, who was several years older than me and much bigger, decided that he was going to play the part of a drowning victim and not let me be in control. As soon as I got to him, in deep water, he grabbed me and pushed me under water. As soon as I came back up to catch my breath, he pushed me under again. I panicked. I was way out of my comfort zone to begin with and now I could not see under water. I could not hold my breath for very long and I could not get away. I was overwhelmed and afraid of drowning myself.

I don’t know what made me do it. Maybe it was a survival instinct which I had no idea that I had. Since I was under water, fighting for my life, and almost even with his waist, I leaned back and kicked him in the crotch as hard as I could. It only took one kick. Immediately, I was free and resurfaced where I could breathe again. He stopped fighting me. I can understand why, but I didn’t really care.

I swam back to shore and left him there, moaning in pain. Sorry, Mr. Counselor, but if it’s you or me, I win every time. And, I got my merit badge anyway.

There have been lots of times in my life that I felt overwhelmed like that. Like I was drowning in this lake of life. I’m sure most of you could say the same thing. It has happened to all of us. It is happening to some of us. And, it will happen to most of us.

In verse 2 of the passage above God says ” When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”

This is not just talking about water and fire. It’s talking about what life throws at us.

That verse could go on and say “When you are faced with a broken relationship, I will be with you no matter what happens and you will be OK. When the doctor tells you that you or your family member has cancer, I will be with you. When you can’t make ends meet financially and feel like all hope is lost, I will be with you. You will not drown. I will make a way out.”

God says: Trust me.

You say: But, it’s so hard, Lord. I’m scared. How are you going to help me?

Now look at verse 1 for that answer: “Do not fear, because I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!”

The word “redeemed” has a Hebrew translation in the verb “gaal”. It is a legal term for the deliverance of some person, property, or right to which one had a previous claim through family relation or possession. It was the duty of a man’s redeemer to buy back the freedom that he had lost. The redeemer was usually the next of kin.

God is our next of kin. We know that we belong to Him because He calls us by our name. “Michael Paul Higley! I bought you back! You are free from all of that guilt you have been feeling! You are free from feeling like you were not worthy to be loved! You are free from feeling like you failed! I paid for it all! I bought you back!”

And, today, just like when I was 13 years old and thought I was going to drown, I came out of what was causing my fears and began to breathe again.

You will too. Don’t be scared. God is with you. He will not allow you to drown. You belong to Him and He bought you back.

The Corkscrew

Proverbs 3: 5-6

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.

I have been snow skiing once in my life. Fortunately for myself and other skiers, I have probably saved someone’s life. Just not my thang.

Breckenridge, Colorado is a favorite for newbies like me because it is mostly made for beginning skiers. Most of the slopes are wide, straight and not very steep, making it easier to go slow and not have to use any fancy moves, none of which I have. I didn’t take any lessons because we had people with us who had been before, so they knew how to do it. My main concern was two things: How to stop and how to get up after I fell. It took some practice to learn to get back up and I had plenty. Stopping was not as easy. I was told to simply cross the toes of my skis and that would slow me down. All it did for me was cross both of my feet and send me flying forward where I face planted into the snow. So, I watched other skiers. I noticed that several of the good skiers would turn sideways as they kind of hopped. I really never went fast enough to do that but, I thought it looked cool.

Then on the last day we were there, I got brave. You only live once, right? So, here I am on my way downhill, looking for little bumps on the slope to jump. I saw one guy veer off of the main path around a couple of trees, so I did too. In and out, in and out.

It was then that as I veered off of the wide slope that I noticed a sign out of the corner of my eye. I remember that it was blue and it triggered a memory from a couple of days ago. Green is for beginners. Blue is for seasoned skiers. About the time that memory kicked in, I saw another sign pass by. All it said was “The Corkscrew”.

Now I knew that something wasn’t right. Too late. I was now in a narrow path with snow walls on either side. It wasn’t straight, but it was more like one of those water slide park rides that throws you up on the side as you round curve after curve. Up one side, down to the middle and back up the other side all while going through snake-like curves. With each curve I was going faster and faster, up and down, just trying to stay upright. It lasted forever.

Finally, I saw the end, a wide opening and lots of room in front of me. I shot out of that last curve like I was launched by a slingshot.

What was in front of me was the bottom of the mountain, somewhat flat with no trees. I was relieved until I realized that there were hundreds of people in the distance and I was flying fast. As their faces got closer, I began to panic. I’m going to plow into someone or many someones! As I approached them, they had no idea that a human projectile  was headed their way at what seemed like 120 MPH. I quickly made the decision to try to stop. I could 1) lay down and crash; 2) cross my skis (and crash); or 3) Hop sideways like the pros do.

Knowing for certain that options 1 and 2 would result in pain, I decided to opt for option 3. It was quick. A short hop and turn sideways to dig my skis into the snow. I closed my eyes and hopped, turned and looked to see the snow flying. Within five seconds, I was stopped and still standing! I looked around. Nobody even knew that I was about to die!

That was the last time I went back up that mountain.

You see, I had confidence in myself and forgot to stay on the path intended for me. My own understanding was that I could handle more on my own. Little did I know what danger was ahead for me and by the time I passed the signs, it was too late. But, soon, the path I was on straightened out. What seemed like certain pain and suffering for me, ended up a small victory. I know without a doubt that God protected me that day. I acknowledge that. And because of His protection and my acknowledgement, I trust Him.

As humans, we base our trust on actions. That’s not the way it works according to the scriptures above. Our order and His order are two different things.

This is how we do life:

1. Rely on what we think we know.
2. Make a decision based on what we think we know.
3. When it’s not a good decision, we ask God for help.
4. Once He fixes it the way we think He should, we trust Him. If it turns out different than we think it should, we don’t understand what we did wrong.

This is how God says to do it:

1. Trust Him first
2. Don’t rely on what we think we know or how we expect the outcome to be
3. Pray to Him BEFORE we make a decision
4. He will make the path straight, no matter what the outcome is.

See the difference? 

No matter what you are going through right now, Trust God. Maybe you’re facing a divorce. Trust God. Maybe you’re having financial problems. Trust God. Maybe you or someone you know has an illness. Trust God. The outcome may not be what you expect according to what you understand. Trust God.

And when you trust Him, your prayer says “I trust you Father. I don’t understand why this is happening, but I acknowledge that you are in control. The path ahead looks so scary, Father. I know that no matter where that path leads, You will make it straight.”

Who Told You That?

Ephesians 2:10 – “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

My family’s claim to fame in this world comes from a doctor who moved from Indiana to Kansas in 1871. Dr. Brewster M. Higley, VI, a distant cousin to me, was having a pretty rough go with life at the time. He had been married three times and history shows that two of his wives died from fatal diseases. His marriage to his third wife was rocky from the beginning. It has been said that life had gotten so bad that Dr. Higley began drinking heavily. He felt worthless. After all, nothing in life had worked out like he planned and it just seemed to be getting worse. Everything was crashing in around him.

A lot of people would have just given up on life and I would imagine that those kinds of thoughts went through Dr. Higley’s mind many times. But, in 1871, there was a new frontier called Kansas where the United States was offering land to purchase for homesteads. So, Dr. Higley decided to leave his wife and get away from the misery of life, hoping a change might help. He packed up what he could and made the almost 1,000 mile trek to northern Kansas, a place with rolling hills and picture perfect sunsets in Smith County, Kansas.

There, he built a small, one room cabin made of local timber and limestone on the banks of the Beaver Creek. Not only had the physical scenery changed for him, the emotional scenery had as well. It was there that Dr. Brewster M. Higley VI wrote a poem which he named “My Western Home”. The poem described the beauty surrounding him and was published in local newspapers. With the help of nearby friend Dan Kelley, it was soon set to music and eventually became known worldwide as the song “Home On The Range”, which is now the official Kansas state song.

Soon, he met his fourth wife, Sarah Clemens. They started a family and moved to town in Smith Center, Kansas, leaving the cabin behind. Fortunately, that same cabin survived and has recently been restored at as a National Historic site.

There have been times in my life that I felt worthless, like life was crashing down around me too. I had mistakenly placed a value on myself based on what someone I loved said about me or acted toward me. It is a dark and lonely place to be when your happiness is based on trying to make someone else happy….especially when nothing you do makes that person happy. You feel rejected and begin to question why you are even necessary to the world.

But, according to the Bible verse above, God tells me that I am his “handiwork”. I like the word that the King James Version uses which is “workmanship”. The same word used in the Greek translation is “poema”, which is like our English word, poem. But, it means so much more than that. We are literally God’s masterpiece…His greatest work. Just as the Mona Lisa is Leonardo da Vinci’s greatest work or the Sistine Chapel is considered Michelangelo’s masterpiece, so are you and I considered to be the masterpiece of God himself.

He had a design in mind for you and I before we were ever born. It is like God saw a beautiful picture in His mind and was inspired to create this wonderful poem in the form of our lives! And that poem, much like Dr. Higley’s poem, was written to describe the beauty surrounding him and is destined to become something so much more for all to know!

When I read this verse, I realize that my worth and value are not based on what someone else says about me. It is not dependent on how well I can please someone else. My poem was not written by them. It is written by an Almighty God who wrote it to do good works and become a beautiful song for the whole world to hear!

I now realize that when I begin to feel like I am in a dark place in life, it is usually based on what someone else thinks about me or says about me. My first question then has to become, “Who told you that?” If the answer to that question is anyone but God, it cannot be the truth. It is simply an opinion.

• IT IS NOT ABOUT HIS PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE. IT’S ABOUT YOUR LIFE FOR HIS PURPOSE. – Mike Higley

Just Along For The Ride

Look closely at this picture of a ride in an amusement park. You can see several people in the picture. Some have their hands up in the air and some are holding on. Some have a smile on their face, some have little expression. One person is holding on for dear life with a look that is waiting for something bad to happen. Like life is about to end. One person is laughing and having the time of his life. But, there are two things in common with all of them: 1) They all chose to get on the ride, not knowing what was ahead. 2) They have no control over where the coaster goes or what it does. Someone else does.

I like roller coasters, but not all of them. If it goes upside down or spins around, I am definitely not a fan. Our lives are similar to the roller coaster and I can definitely identify with the people on the ride. I can either be afraid and worry about what life brings us and is ahead of us. Or I can sit back and enjoy the ride, knowing that the One in control has nothing but my safety in mind and will always make sure that we return to Him. I don’t know about you, but I enjoy knowing that I am “Just Along for the Ride”. I consider it joy to know that God is in control and has my best interest in mind. Let go, raise your hands, laugh, and enjoy the ride.

^{James 1: 2-4}

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faithproduces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

It’s All Good!

Mike

Worrying & Social Security

Matthew 6:26-34 (NIV)

26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Tonight, I posted a humorous tidbit about retirement on Facebook .

Most people knew it was intended to be funny, but it also struck a reality nerve with most of us. That is as we get older, we start to think about what we will do when we retire. More importantly, we worry about if we will be able to make it financially. There are always news articles about Social Security and have been since I was young. “By 2020 (the year keeps changing), Social Security is going to go broke!”, they say. But, it never does.

I have paid my fair share of money into Social Security, except for the past few years, as I have been self employed. Do I worry about it? Well, let’s just say that I think about it from time to time. It seems like the older I get, the less I worry about things. I know some people who worry more as they get older. I probably worry more about the people I love than I do myself.

This brings me to the Bible verses above.
If I were asked to translate them, it would go something like this:

26 Why are you worrying about so much? You see those birds in that nest way up in that tree with their little fledglings? What a view they must have! And just think…they never have to go to the grocery store, or plant a garden, or apply for food stamps to get what they need to eat. They don’t have to put their food away in the cabinet for later meals. It’s all provided for them by God, one meal at a time….for free. They are never hungry! That same God has said that YOU are way more important to Him than those birds are, hasn’t He? You are much more amazing to Him than all of the creatures of the Earth! 27 So, why do you worry about things? You will stress yourself out and take years off of your life if you don’t stop. You sure can’t add any years to your life by worrying, can you?

28 So, why do you stress yourself out about how you’re going to be able to afford nice things to wear? Now, look down. You see the flowers growing? They become such beautiful sights to look at. They don’t have to do anything to make themselves look better or prettier. It just happens. 29 I’m not sure if you remember King Solomon in the Bible or not, but that royal man was a pretty snazzy dresser! Velvet, gold, silk linen clothes…yet he was never as beautiful as a field of blooming sunflowers or a garden bed of spring daffodils or a rose garden. 30 And every single year, without fail in the same ground, the grass comes up. It’s a gorgeous green color like no other. It shows off every spring and summer and burns away in the winter. Have some faith! He will take care of you and what you have to wear. 31 And you’re stressing about how your going to eat, what you’re going to drink, or how you’re going to be able to afford clothes. Stop it. 32 Those are the things that people who don’t really know God worry about. You know Him and He knows what you need. 33 Here is the one thing…the main thing, that He wants you to understand. You ready? Make your focus about God and what He is doing around you. Not you….Him. Do that and He says all of that other “stuff” will make it’s way to you. 34 My point is, you have enough on your plate right now without stressing over tomorrow. There are enough problems every day to go around. God’s got this. Let it go.

IT’S NOT ABOUT HIS PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE…..IT’S ABOUT YOUR LIFE FOR HIS PURPOSE.

Mike

All About Life.

As I go through life, I sometimes get clarity based on past experiences. But sometimes, it is based on what I have learned through reading God’s word. That’s when I know it’s about to get real. And it does. I love to write, because it is great therapy to type out what I am thinking, both happy and sad.

So, I decided to create a collection of what I write and think about. I hope you get as much therapy out of them as I do. Enjoy.

By the way…this picture means nothing. I just thought it would look cool if John Wayne played a Fender Telecaster.

Mike