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Across the Pastor’s Desk by Don Malinsky

This true story goes like this:

Brenda was a young woman who was invited to go rock climbing. Although she was scared to death, she went with her group to a tremendous granite cliff. She put on her gear, took ahold of the rope and started up the face of that rock. She got to a ledge where she could take a break. As she was hanging on there, the safety rope snapped against her eye, knocking out one of her contacts.

There she sat on that rock ledge, with hundreds of feet below her, and hundreds of feet above her. She hoped the contact had just fallen on the ledge. She looked but saw no sign of it. Her fear multiplied. Blurry sight at a great height — now what? She prayed to the Lord, and she did make it to the top. While there, she looked across the range as best she could, thinking of that verse that says, “The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth.”

She thought, “Lord, you can see all these mountains. You know every stone and leaf, and you know where my contact is. Please help me.” 

She and the group made it to the bottom. At the bottom there was another party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff.

One of them shouted, “Hey, you guys! Anybody lose a contact lens?” Well, if that wouldn’t be startling enough, do you know why the climber saw it? An ant was moving slowly across the face of the rock, carrying it! Now what do you think that ant was probably thinking? Something, I think, would do all of us good to say in these challenging times, “God, I don’t know why you want me to carry this load. I can see no good in it, and it’s awfully heavy. But if you want me to carry it, I will.”

Jesus carried a heavy load to Calvary for us. 

He knew his Father wanted him to carry it, and he did not hesitate. Nor should we. Lord, help us serve, knowing we do not do it on our own, but through your amazing grace/gifts.

Help us to be loving caregivers, peacemakers and Resurrection people, making every day an Easter Day here in Albert Lea and beyond.

Don Malinsky is chaplain at St. John’s Lutheran Community.