Marveling Majesty (warning: long meaningful post)

We’re in the middle of an absolutely wonderful wedding weekend in Redstone, Colorado with Amanda and Rob and their family and friends. It is spectacular. We’ve been to Colorado once before, a couple summers ago when we spent time in Vail following a wedding.

If you’ve ever made the drive from Denver into the mountains along I-70 you know what I mean when I call it a constant gallery of God’s handiwork. Once again I was taken aback by the rugged natural beauty, recalling the same emotions that I felt two years ago when we first visited here, and a similar feeling to the first time Joy and I drove the Pacific Coast Highway from Carmel south through Big Sur. It’s a breathtaking, speechless sensation, to say the least.



Once while driving through Arizona with his wife Jamie, Christian songwriter Andrew Peterson was struck by the raw majesty of the Grand Canyon. He and his wife pulled off the road and they wrote the following song, which rings clearly in my mind every time I experience a setting like this.

“Nothing to Say”

Hey Jamie would you mind,
driving down this road awhile,
Arizona’s waiting on these eyes.
Rich is on the radio
and I think we ought to take it slow,
Arizona’s caught me by surprise.

Hey Jamie have you heard,
a picture paints a thousand words?
But the photographs don’t tell it all.
I see the eagles swim the canyon sea,
Creation yawns in front of me,
Oh Lord I’ve never felt so small.

And I don’t believe that I believed in You as deeply as today,
I reckon’ what I’m saying is there’s nothing more, nothing more to say…

And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah
The canyons echo sweet amazing grace.
My spirit sails, the mighty gales are bellowing Your name,
And I’ve got nothing to say,
No, I’ve got nothing to say.

Hey Jamie, do you see,
I’m broken by this majesty.
So much glory and so little time.
So turn off the radio, let’s listen to the songs we know,
All praise to Him who reigns on high.

And I don’t believe that I believed in You as deeply as today,
I reckon’ what I’m saying is there’s nothing more, nothing more to say…

And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah
The canyons echo sweet amazing grace.
My spirit sails, the mighty gales are bellowing Your name,
And I’ve got nothing to say,
No, I’ve got nothing to say.

Glory, glory hallelujah.
Glory, glory hallelujah.
Glory, glory hallelujah.

And the mountains sing Your glory hallelujah
The canyons echo sweet amazing grace.
My spirit sails, the mighty gales are bellowing Your name,
And I’ve got nothing to say,
No, I’ve got nothing to say.

Hey Jamie would you mind,
driving down this road a while,
Arizona’s caught me by surprise.
###


After about four hours and a brief stop at Vail, we arrived at our destination. Filoha Meadows is a small retreat just outside of Redstone on the Crystal River. No cell phone coverage…they don’t have towers there. No internet either, except for dial-up, and we didn’t bring a phone cord. What an inconvenience, I thought. Until I stepped outside again and realized where we were.



We had a great dinner with all the guests, and once the sun went down several of us, (Joy and I, Amanda and Rob, the bride and groom, Amanda's sister, Katie and friend, Bethany) jumped into the natural hot springs pool. The water was 130 degrees and that’s HOT…naturally hot. We had to turn on the cold-water hose just to make the water bearable. As we sat in the pool relaxing we gazed at the stars and into the heavens. The Big Dipper was bold and bright and to the left you could see the Milky Way. Miles from any nearby city, the stars shone brilliantly and once again I couldn’t help but pause in amazement. How small am I. And how big is God.



This afternoon we spent 5 hours four-wheeling in the mountains. It was a blast! (this picture has the bride and groom jumping off the cliff with Crystal Mill in the background). After rehearsal this evening we drove 20 miles to Carbondale to call and check on Graycen and find an internet connection. The wedding is tomorrow morning and then afterwards we’re going for a couple days in Aspen. Then we’ll head back to Denver across Independence Pass.



Our lives have really gotten busy. So often we’re traveling and spending time on the road. It’s easy to get so busy that you don’t take time to be thankful for what really matters in life. The wedding tomorrow (I mean this morning) is going to be beautiful.



And our time afterwards is going to be great. It’s so much fun out here and such an adventure. Each day, I’m excited to get up, put on my old cowboy boots, jump in the SUV and see where the road takes us. Stay tuned for pictures from this amazing wedding. :)