Date: 2021-05-26
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Appalachian Trail Psalms Lakeland NidhatakAdventure (Wednesday 9/03/08, 5:53pm at Cloud Pond, ME) You areadventure. Adventure is Your name, my Lord. You created and toldAdam to subdue the land, to search and explore. You createdadventure for Yourself. Creating the universe, creating the heavens,creating the earth. You gave us the desire to seek, to explore, andto conquer. We are created in Your image. We, mankind, areadventurers like You, our creator. If only we¢d venture after You. I¢ve seen lavish lake, magnificent mountains, roaring rivers, andspectacular starscapes. I marvel at them all. Let my greatestadventure be seeking YOU, the creator of all, the adventure author. You are my quest. You are my adventure!Because (Tuesday 8/19/08 at Gorham, NH) Because of YouI was created. Because of You I live. Because of You I shareeternity. But why? Who am I? A sinful pitiful man. Why do Youbless me? Why do I sit here many miles from home having journeyed sosafe? Because You love me? Yes! Because You love me. ¢I want toknow what love is¢ was my cry. You are love. I am not alone. Youhave been by my side always. Though I slumber in my daily humanhabits, You have waited, watched and guarded faithfully. Hold meJesus. Hold me Jesus, just for a while. I¢ve seen millions offlowers and stars. I¢ve seen the mountains and the rivers. I¢veseen the midnight moon. I¢ve seen so much as I vainly travelalong. Now I want to see You.Compassion(Thursday8/21/08, Carlo Col Shelter, celebrating first day in Maine) Your compassionnever fails. You see the sparrow fall. You¢ve seen the lost axe inthe river. You¢ve seen the hungry faithful widow. Who am I that Ihave favor with you? Who am I to shower in Your compassion sofreely? So easy for You to blot out this worthless soul. But Yourloving kindness can not be measured. Love that can¢t beunderstood. Broken, beaten, spiked, You were silent. We didn¢tunderstand. You forgave Your murderers. Incomprehensiblecompassion. No prejudice to any soul. Compassion free to all. Toall free compassion. Just for me to say ¢My Lord¢ to accept. Compassion equals undeserved love. Dreams(Thursday8/21/08, Carlo Col Shelter, celebrating first day in Maine)My hopes and mydreams, I give to You. I want to know the hopes and dreams You havefor me. To please You is my hope. To know You is my dream. Inspiremy night dreams with your magnificent mysteries. Challenge mydaydreams with Your divide desires. I dream of running across thegalaxies, jumping on the cosmic mountains You have created, hand inhand with my Lord. I dream of dancing on Saturn rings, praising Youand Your creativity. Jump from the Rockies to the Appalachians in onestride, You next to me as We laugh in Holy innocent joy. Dream. Onlydreamers have dreams that come true.Endings(Friday8/22/08 at Old Speck Mountain) Endings cometoo fast and they pass too slow. Oh, my heart aches. My flesh isweary, so tired. So far have I traveled. Great climbs, great drops. Rock over rock over rock. Yet I don¢t want it to end. As my bodywithers, I know it must end. My spirit will be broken, but a brokenspirit is an acceptable offering to You, my Lord. The journey ishard. The reward? Seeing Your creativity. Hearing the waterfallsapplaud You. Listening to the trail bird¢s (Thrush) nightly solofilled with Your praise. The trail willend. The solitude will end. This mission will end. One day this lifewill end. Like a seed in autumn, it withers, dies, and falls to theground. Then new life begins. A new trail? A new adventure? Aneternity with You? Yet my heart is so twisted. If not for the joywe had, would I not be so sorrowful for its ending? Because of Yourgoodness, because of what You¢ve done for me, I¢m sad to see itcompleted. However, an ending is a beginning of something new. Whatdo You have planned, my Lord? Forever!(Wednesday,9/03/08 at Cloud Pond, ME) Forever I willthank You! How blessed I am to be here right now. Your creativitygoes on forever! I will sing with You forever, laugh with Youforever, and dance with You forever. As I hike this trail, sit atthis pond, and ponder Your creativity on this fading earth, I know Iwill one day explore the universe with You. You are my Friend foreverand I am Your friend forever. You are my Father forever and I am Yourson forever. You are my King forever and I am Your subject forever. Forever in Yourheart. Forever!Gift(Saturday9/06/08 at Antler¢s Campsite on Lower Jo-Mary Lake, ME) What a gift, myLord! You gave me life! A gift. Mountains I can see. Rivers I canswim. Loons I can hear. Wind I can feel. Balsams I can smell. Moonlight I can perceive Your smile. Rain I can refresh in. SunriseI can watch as You create. All a gift. A gift to point to You,everything points to You and to Jesus, the greatest gift of all. Because of Him, I will eternally explore the universe and point evenmore to You. Because of Him, I live. You gave me life! What a gift,my Lord! Thank you!Holy(Wednesday,9/03/08, 5:30pm at Cloud Pond, ME)Holyis Your name! Holy, holy, holy! Holy means set apart. Set me apartfor You great God. Holy, make me holy for You and You alone. Repairthe flaws, crush the sin, and dislodge the pride. Soak me, wash me,and press me. I want to be holy. You are holy and I am Your child. I want to be holy as my Father in heaven, my King Jesus. Cleanse mysoul; make it whiter than snow to serve only You. To live and to diefor only You. Holy, holy, holy, all for You. All for You becauseYou are holy. I(Tuesday8/26/08 12:30-45pm, partway up sunny and windy Saddleback Mountain,Me) Who am I thatYou would allow me to sit at this moment, on this mountain, viewingcountless mountains in Your desired formation in front of me? Hundreds of miles of Your creativity sit before me that I havetrekked through. But how little my steps are to this great stretch ofbeauty before me. I can see back to Mount Washington in NewHampshire, perhaps over 100 trail miles between us. Who am I thatYou¢ve blessed me to see so much of Your creativity in this season? Yet what I have seen is just a small taste of what You have ahead ofme in this life and life yet to come. I¢ve seen You in themountains, the rivers, and the stars. You¢ve left Your mark for manto recognize You. You are no secret. I see You. I know You. Ilove you. I am nothing without You. And only by Your magnificentmercies am I able to know You and see Your beauty. You alone arethe reason I live, I in You. Everything I do, everywhere I go,everything I dream let it be for You. Jesus (09/06/08 Antler¢s Campsite on Lower Jo-Mary Lake, ME)Jesus. Yahshua. Sweetest name. You are no longer just the Lamb, but now the Lion. Holy Emperor. Mighty General. Greatest Leader. Holy Warrior. Supremeconqueror. God in flesh, flesh glorified. Perfection of perfection.Strong! Mighty! Terrible!Tremble! My hearttrembles at the awe of our King. He¢s coming! On a white horse. Robe dipped in blood. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. Fear Him. Jesus- a baby. Jesus- a man. Jesus- asacrifice. Jesus- aglorified being Jesus- a mightywarrior in waiting. Jesus- God madeflesh. Jesus-beginning and the end. Jesus!King(Wednesday9/10/08 at Rainbow Lake Dam, ME) You are myKing. I am Your subject. Command me where to go. Direct my path. Ibow only to You. I bow in awe to You. You are my King. I am Yoursubject. Lead in battle, I will follow. Give me Your orders for thisday and I will salute. Reclaim what is Yours. Punish the thief. Thisis Your day, the day of the King. Like no kingbefore or ever to come You will rule with perfect righteousness andjudgment. Only a fool would walk astray. Only a fool would walk indisobedience. Once Your awesome terrible power is displayed who cannot know! Who couldn¢t believe that You are the promised King! Nature will rejoice in glorious beauty. The waters will applaud. The clouds will dance in distant displays. Your children willrejoice. Who are You? The King! The King! THE KING! This is Yourday, the Day of the King. HowLong? (A longing to see Jesus)(Basedon a trail entry by another hiker in 2005 who simply wrote ¢How long until I see theone who gave life to me- Jesus.¢)Howlong until I see the One who gave life to meEventhen You¢ll be too beautiful for my human eyesWithYour arms of love I¢ll be lifted from Your feetAsYou radiance evaporates my pool of tears awayHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I see the One who gave life to meHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I thank the Son who came to set me freeHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I kiss the Man crushed at GethsemaneHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I worship the Lamb slain on Calvary¢TilI gaze upon the risen One, behold the face of the glorified SonHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I see the One who gave life to meMyrenewed hands will play Your music perfectlyWithan angelic voice Your praise forever will I singAndyouthful strength dance to the Ancient of DaysThenI¢ll stand in awe at the presence of my KingHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I see the One who gave life to meHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I thank the Son who came to set me freeHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I kiss the Man crushed at GethsemaneHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I worship the Lamb slain on Calvary¢TilI gaze upon the risen One, behold the face of the glorified SonHowlong, Jesus, ¢til I see the One who gave life to meMemory(9/10/2008at Rainbow Lake Dam)Keep my memoryfresh, my Lord. Erase all that is displeasing to You. Let my memoriesbe of the greatness I have seen of Your creativity. May my memoriesplease You! Forget the petty things of old. Forget the lingeringgrudges. Only memories of Your joy and love let shine. Onward to newmemories to please You!The old past isover, rotted, forgotten. Hurt and destroyed dreams are gone forever.Only memories of good, of Your goodness let flourish. You and the joyof your goodness help me to carry on. Let the dreams in the nightglorify You. The memories that display let them bring a smile to You.Let¢s create more and let them be pure. Hoping to please only Youuntil I¢m home forevermore.Near(9/10/08,10:45am at Rainbow Lake Dam) Draw me near,my God. I am near the waters of this lake, but not in. How near can Iget to You my Lord? The closer I get, the further it seems. You arein me but am I in You? I want to be so near I can hear Your whisper.I see Katahdin, so near, so beautiful, yet 30 miles away. I want toclimb nearer. I will be at the summit in 48 hours touching what Ihave longed for. I want to be that close to You. So near that I cantouch You. I¢ll take arock from the summit so I¢ll always have a piece of Katahdin. But Idon¢t want just a piece of You! I don¢t want to own You. Whocan? I want You to claim me. Not just a piece of me, but all of me. All the territories of this body, mind and spirit. For if I don¢trelinquish all I have, then I don¢t have You at all. Lay claim tothis wasteland. For only You can make it new. Claim me! Place Yourflag on my heart and conquer. I am Your territory. Let no evil treadon me. You are always near. So near that You will chase away the evilfrom this child of Yours. Pray I staynear as You stay faithfully near to me. Oh! Draw me near.Open(9/07/08at Whitehouse Landing, Pemadumcook Lake, ME) Open is the wayto You. If only we¢d decide to venture. Open our eyes to see Yoursignature amongst the rivers and the mountains. Open our ears to hearYou! Open is Yourhand as it reaches down to lowly man, waiting to be grasped. Open isYour heart, to love and be loved. Eternal Life; an open gift to anywho care to accept.Peace and love, opento those in need. Fathership and sonship, endless adventures andfutures unfathomable, open to all inclined to desire. The way to theFather opened by the sacrifices of Jesus. Opened! No more veil. Justopen our hearts to Him and He¢ll open our eyes and ears. Our beingwill at last be open to Him and all He plans for us. Open the doorand step into His chamber¢¦forever and ever. Amen. Peace(9/10/08finished at 10:01am at Rainbow Lake Dam) As I sit onthis large rock jutted into the lake, I am nearly surrounded bywater. Lovely and peaceful is the water and solid is the rock I siton. With You, Great God, creator of this rock, as well as everythingI see, I am surrounded on all sides by You. How lovely You are. Howpeaceful You are. How solid a rock You are, one that won¢t bemoved. I sit in the palm of Your hand, nothing to be afraid of. Youwere my Protector in days past, You are my Protector this day, and inthe days to come, You will be my Protector. I have nothing to fearfor You have granted me perfect peace. When the dirtywaters of this world are splashing against me, with You, the SolidRock, I am skirted in, at peace. When the violent winds of this worldattempt to scatter me, with You, the solid Rock, I am shieldedbehind, at peace. When the driving rains want to wash my hopes anddreams away, because of You, I stand firm on the solid foundation, atpeace. Yahshua, the Solid Rock. Perfect peace by the Prince ofPeace.Quiet(Written9/10/08 at Rainbow Lake Dam remembering thedusk of Wednesday, 9/03/08, at Cloud Pond, ME) Some nights areso quiet all I can hear is my heartbeat. Not a creature, a wave, nora wind. Just my heartbeat. All else is quiet. So quiet. I listen forYou in the quiet. Are You speaking to me? I look for You in thestillness. Where are You? I cry to You in the developing darkness.Can You hear me? Then I see ahalf moon, then a planet, then a galaxy. You are speaking, You arehere, and You listen even when all is at quiet. So quiet. On the stillwater a Loon summons its mate in the night, a beautiful sound. Ahidden Barred owl calls from the dark lakeshore. What are theysaying? As I listen totheir cries in the quiet, I distinctly hear them. I know, as I cryout in the quiet, You hear me. Is my cry as beautiful to Your ears asthe Loon is to mine? To me, the Barred owl is unseen as he calls. DoYou see me? Let my cries in the night be as pleasing to You as theLoon and the Barred owl are to me. I¢m a voice inthe quiet calling You. Listening to only You and my heartbeat. Soquiet.Run(Saturday9/6/08 at Antler¢s Campsite on Lower Jo-Mary Lake)I run to You Jesus!With Joy I run to You. I¢m prepared not to only run to You but towherever You send me. Not a sprint but an ultra run for You. Toendure the pain, the heartache, the hunger, the discomfort to reachthe goal for You. With all my strength and determination to run tothat finish line that You have set before me. To run as if it makes adifference because it does make a difference. You indeed havecommissioned the race and pointed me to the finish line. Run! Help meto run and to stay in the race! No crown, no prize, just Your words¢Well done good and faithful servant.¢ Only then shall I rest. Sweet(9/10/08at Rainbow Lake Dam)Howsweet You are my LordOnlyYour children know the tasteAssugar is sweet to our tonguesYouare sweet to our heartsMentry all to please their soulsTravel,buildings, land, sinButnothing can satisfy the heart¢s desireExceptthe sweetness of JesusOnlyHe can satisfy the heartSoothingthe soul with His loveSatisfyingthe hungry heartLikea hot breakfast to a hungry hikerSweeterthan honeySweeterthan chocolateNothingsatisfiesLikethe sweetness of Sweet JesusToday(9/10/08at Rainbow Lake Dam) ¢Where do Igo to today, my Lord?¢ I ask as I wander along each day, headingnorth. Where do I go? Where do I stop? And You show me. I seebeauty beyond measure. Places I only dream of. How can I thank you? No more todaysabout me. Today belongs to you. How can I serve You? How can I serveyou better? You have blessedme today with this majestic view of my destination. This morning Iasked where shall I go today and You led me here! A campsite with aview of Katahdin!Why? You haveblessed me so! How can I ever bless You?Ipraise You for today!Iworship You today!Everydayis a gift.Nowasted todays anymore my Lord!Todaybelongs to You! Where shall I go?Upstream(9/10/08at Rainbow Lake Dam) Find me in theriver, the river Jesus. Many are there, refreshing in Your waters. But Iwant more. I want toswim upstream to Your river¢s source¢¦YOU. To let all behind andhead upstream, refreshing this old soul in Your waters as I climb andclimb. Upstream to You, the source. Never to be contented where I amin the river, but to search and explore the spiritual frontiers thatare Yours. Pools to cleanse and immerse in. Eddies to relax andrefresh in. Upstream to You. ¢Follow me¢I yell to others I observe stationary as they refresh in the river.¢I¢m going upstream closer to the source, Jesus.¢ ¢But this isbeautiful right here in the river Jesus¢ some say. ¢Yes,indeed!¢ I reply. ¢But how much sweeter and beautiful it is atthe source! We must pursue the river upstream to where it all began,the spring of living water, Jesus. Upstreamagainst complacency. Upstreamagainst the norm. Upstreamagainst flesh¢s wisdom. Upstream to thesource, Jesus.Value(9/10/08possibly at Rainbow Lake Dam) Your creativityis so beautiful! I value what You have done. Value is worth. What isthe value of all I¢ve seen? Priceless. Eyes to seeYour creativity. Ears to hear Your wind and water. A nose to smellthe fragrance of the flowers. What value is all this that You havegiven to us? Beyond measure. You valuemankind so much as to come and die for us, puny man. But why? Whatis the value of Your salvation? Unfathomable. So magnificent andmysterious is Your love that no man can comprehend. I hold all I¢veseen up to You in thanksgiving. I value all that You have done. Youdied for me! No value to my family but You died for lowly me! I amvaluable to You! You are priceless to me.Wilderness(9/02/08sitting along Little Wilson Creek after hiking down from LittleWilson Falls. First day in Maine¢s ¢100 Mile Wilderness¢) The ¢100 milewilderness!¢ Yes! Here I am, my first night! Alone, disturbed inspirit. Delivered a message from You to a stranger. A bit chilly as Isit here on the slippery slate. Oh! Open my eyes to see! Open my earsto hear! Open my heart to receive! What is it that You, my God, haveso long awaited me to partake of? What is it that has taken decadesto complete? Where will You send me? The first nighthere in the wilderness. So many mixed emotions. Alone, afraid, weary,excited, broken, grateful. The sound of the waterfall applauds You!The stream before me applauds You! The lush forest that surrounds meis but a minute expression of its original glory and of its futureglory. I am like that. I want to explode in the glory of my God. Likenature, I moan in waiting. But I wait. My time in the holy wildernessis dwindling. The warrior within is in waiting. I wait to hear thecry of my Conqueror Jesus echo across the wilderness His commands forme. His orders will be served, the mission understood, and thewilderness I will leave. The assignment will commence¢¦ eXtravagant(fromhome, in gratitude for His providence) Your providencehas been extravagant! Against the odds You have permitted me to trekso far and yet return home so safe. My Appalachian venture was notas a prodigal son but as an exploring disciple, seeking You andseeking You early when it is written that I will find You. Theextravagance of your artistry was on display wherever my eyes choseto glance. During the lonely first nights when I questioned mydecision, You cloaked me with Your extravagant peace. On frostyhilltops I was charmed by the extravagant displays You presented inthe heavens. Within the wilds I journeyed and slept safely because ofYour extravagant protection. As the distance and the days shortened,Your extravagant attentiveness to this weary soul preserved me. Who am I tosee and soak in all You have created? You have granted my heart¢sdesires. Though my heart twisted with many stirring memories andemotions and the tears wrung out, You gently eased my heart¢s painsand allowed me to understand what I was experiencing: Extravagantlove, only given by an extravagant God, You. Oh, let thiswarrior-in-waiting give birth to an extravagant devotion to You. Oh, beautifulFather, how can I thank You for Your extravagant providence? How?You(9/02/08sitting along Little Wilson Creek after hiking down from LittleWilson Falls. First day in Maine¢s ¢100 Mile Wilderness¢) It¢s allabout You. The winds are blowing all around me. You sent them. Thewaters of the creek in front of me are rushing by. You rained on theheadwaters. The clouds, dark and light, grey and blue pass high aboveme. You told them to race across the sky. The shapes of themountains I see at a distance were created by your fingers. Art thatcan¢t be copied. The Goldenrod and the Asters dance to You in thewind. Their shapes so intricate only You could imagine. Trees sosimilar but each so different-white birch, red pine, white spruce-all stretching towards the sky. Who could design them? Only You. Andme, so puny and weak yet so complex. Only You could imagine and bringto pass a man. Then You. Whocould know You? Who could understand? Nothing withholds You. Nottime, not space, and certainly not me. Everything was created by Youfor You. It¢s all about You.Zeal(9/02/08sitting along Little Wilson Creek after hiking down from LittleWilson Falls. First day in Maine¢s ¢100 Mile Wilderness¢) Give me Yourzeal God! Zeal to change people, places, and palaces. Zeal to livefor You. Zeal to clean out Your house. Zeal to clean out my house. Help my faith be strong. Erase any disbelief. Let me look only toYou! Let me forgive any fallen pillars. Let me forgive any selfappointed leaders. It¢s not about me. It¢s not about them. It¢sabout You. Give me zeal toseek only You. Give me zeal to worship only You. Give me zeal tolisten to only You. Zeal to complete obediently and perfectly thewill of God my Father all the days of my life. I have zeal torun and zeal to hike. I only want zeal for the things of You. Zealto live for You. Zeal to honor You.Zealto die for You.