The Bible says “When you walk through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you pass through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames…

When You Pass through the Waters

Hiking Point Arena-Stornetta National Monument
If there is a more beautiful place on the California coast than Point Arena-Stornetta National Monument, I can’t imagine what it would look like. The trail through Point Arena-Stornetta takes day hikers through clifftop meadows of waving grasses and wildflowers…

Remember in the Wilderness
Going out into the wilderness stirs us to remember. It might be recollections of the last time we were in this place, what we and others thought and said and did, or it might be flitting, half-forgotten memories of something…

DIY Bunkbed for Over the Seats in a Van
Since we bought our first full-size van back in 2001, we have slept in the van rather than in our big blue tent (which never really fit on tent platforms anyway – more about sleeping in the van here). As…

Hiking a Misty Mazama Trail to McNeil Point
The weather really can make or break a trip or a hike. Last year, visiting Mt. Hood, the weather went from socked in to quite cloudy, to totally cloudy and misty and rainy. The last day we decided to do…

Nothing is Missed by the Eyes of God
God has His eye on the wilderness, on the times and seasons, on the happenings in the wide open meadows and hidden forest glens. Nothing goes unmissed from His eyes, both in human affairs and in what we might call…

Hiking the Virginia Lakes to K19 Viewpoint
The Virginia Lakes! They are beautiful, especially early in the season when they are surrounded by snow. But at any time of the summer or fall they are a destination well worth visiting – near enough to Yosemite National Park…

Judgement is Not the Answer to Creation’s Groans
Sometimes in traversing the wilderness, we feel its groans (see Romans 8:18-22). We see its oppression to sin, to evil, to the slavery that came when Adam and Eve sinned. It is a reality that creation is not living in…

Sneak Peak: A California Trip through Desert and Snow
Well, I just got back from a fantastic trip to California! We saw the desert, and we saw snow (lots of snow!), not to mention some truly fabulous views of mountains, cliffs, slot canyons, salt flats, and the beautiful NorCal…

Like Plants, God Came to Give Us Life Abundantly
I just got back from a trip to the wilderness. It was a good time of being with my family; we made more than just a few happy memories 🙂 And hiking through the wilderness – some of it fairly…