8:00 p.m.

So my wife gave me this incredible gift for my birthday: A 3-day trip to the mountains by myself. My intent is to use it as an extended spiritual retreat of sorts. No computers, cell phones, ipod, radio. Just me, the mountains, a couple of Bibles and my journal.

The trip has not been quite what I've expected so far. Not bad I guess...just different. The 4 1/2 hour trip ended up taking 6 1/2. I stopped twice to fix the bike I had attempted (with limited success) to attach to the bike rack (which I had never used). About 50 minutes into the trip, it became quite obvious what I should have done. Amazing that the bike never fell off and that I didn't kill anybody! I'm such an idiot. From there I was able to relax a bit more, except that my left arm and knee were getting fried in the 96 degree heat. The car has no AC, so it was just a very hot, sweaty, sun-burning ride. There was nowhere to move my arm or leg where they would be out of the sun...although I'm sure it was quite a topic of conversation for the other drivers watching me try.

There were 2 serious accidents that slowed me to a halt for 40 min's or so each time, allowing the sun to REALLY bake me thoroughly. And there was a detour that added 1/2 hour or so. Oh, and I made a couple of (very short) mis-turns...hardly worth mentioning.

After all of that, I was within 1/2 hour of the campground when I passed a lady stranded at a busy intersection with radiator fluid pouring out of her car. To be honest, the last thing I wanted to do was help. I was hot, tired, hungry and anxious to get to the camp. And besides, I'm really bad at diagnosing car problems and I had no room in my car to drive her anywhere. But the poor lady was clearly stranded and nobody seemed to care. They'd just look straight ahead as if they didn't see her...much the same way people act when passing a homeless person. I pulled over, got out and talked with her, cleared my guitar / backpack from the front and miraculously shoving them in the back seat, and drove her...well...just a couple miles up the road and back to drop off whatever she had been on the way to drop off and then back to her stalled car where a fireman waited.

Her name was Abby. Probably 40 or so. Cursed like a sailor and didn't seem all that grateful really. She was just mad at the auto shop that had "fixed" her radiator 3 times. I'd probably be mad too.

That's what I want my life, my everyday routine life, to be like. Helping people who need help...even if I don't much feel like it. And certainly not for a pat on the back or to look good. And not even just because I know it's what God wants of me. But simply out of a deep love and compassion for people. People who need help (ummm...which would be every one of them). To realize that everyone has a story. To consistently lay aside MY wants and selfishness to put potentially ungrateful (but needy) strangers first.

Anywho, I made it. Set up camp, and got a shower (yay!). I ate a ginormous steak cooked over the fire, with a lot of mushrooms. Ahhh. Now I feel like I can think a bit more clearly.

I don't think I've ever actually camped all by myself, except for high school in the woods behind the cabin. I was surprised (and ashamed) to find myself feeling almost lonely...but more in the sense of feeling like everyone is looking at me because I'm the only one camping by myself. I'm not actually lonely...I don't think. I'm just thinking that if I were here with someone else, these kids around here wouldn't be looking at me like I'm some poor, lonely crazy bearded man, and dad's wouldn't give me that protective look of, "I've got my eye on you..."

Am I really still so insecure and shallow that I care about such things? I feel this need to announce to the whole camp that I'm a perfectly normal and like-able guy. Hmmm...that might backfire. Besides, the sun's down now and I don't feel like everyone's staring at me anymore.

And now that that's all behind me, it's cooled off and my belly's full, I'm quite in my element and anxious for what lies ahead. My purpose for this trip: To reach a new level of intimacy with God.

And I'd love to come down off this mountain with the secret to making it happen ALL THE TIME. To ALWAYS remain focused on what really matters and not to let the world or the people around me TAME me.

SPENDING REGULAR TIME GETTING TO KNOW GOD BETTER

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SERVING OTHERS OUT OF A SINCERE LOVE

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DEEPER FAITH / PEACE

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FALLING MORE IN LOVE WITH GOD

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A CONSISTENTLY FOCUSED LIFE

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