This morning's sky was clear. Completely clear.
Meaning that the odds were high that visibility is improved.
Eagerly, I ran outside to see if I could see Mt. Fuji.
YES!
And... the southern Japanese Alps were visible as well!
Seeing an albeit distant horizon of mountain ranges is a great way to start my day!
I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
~Ps. 121.1,2
Three years ago I wrote about a day of Fuji sightings:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dec. 6, 2005
Dear family,
Not only has it been a long day, it has also been a cold day, with
biting wind. Yet that produced the beauty and majesty of this day.
As I drove towards our team's center this morning, I encountered a
dangerous situation. I found myself involuntarily taking my eyes off
the road and shouting (to no one), "It's Fuji-san!!" I couldn't believe
it. There was Mt. Fuji, and not just the peak but the sides of the
mountain too. It looked bigger than I ever remember seeing it from
here, 130 km away. Actually I wasn't even looking for it, since it
wasn't the day after a typhoon or New Year's Day when there is no
pollution. The range of mountains that I saw first puzzled me. They
were the mountains beyond Tokyo, the Southern Alps. I can't say that
I've ever seen them from here. When I saw them, I knew Fuji-san must be
visible also.
Upon arriving at the center, I immediately went into the office and
asked, "Did you see Fuji-san?!" Three Japanese in the office all rushed
outside, slipped into their shoes and raced to the 2nd floor to look
out and see it. "The air is blowing briskly today!" they all agreed,
thus we could see Fuji, as the pollution didn't have a chance to
settle. Precisely because of the cold weather and biting wind, we were
treated to a glorious sight!
A few minutes later, I was in the car with two team members, headed to
the next city. One lady hadn't known Fuji was visible today and kept
looking for it as we drove. At last, she glimpsed the top of the cone,
above a wall on the highway, and could relax, satisfied that she, too,
had seen it!
In the evening, as the sun was beginning to set, I thought, "Oh, it
will be gorgeous, setting behind Fuji. Where could I go to watch it?"
But I had to keep moving. Imagine my delight as, 2 blocks later, I
caught another glimpse and could see the glowing sky framing it. A
block later, I stopped in at the convenience store. Paying for my
purchase, I talked as usual with the clerk about the weather, and then
added, "Did you see Fuji?!" No, she hadn't, and was very surprised that
it had been visible today! We had quite a conversation about it.
As I got back into my car, I thought over all the conversations I had
today about Mt. Fuji, and also the eagerness and excitement with which
I told almost everyone I met (anyone I had a relationship with). The
beauty and majesty of Mt. Fuji are only a tiny reflection of the beauty
and majesty of God. Fuji is visible on rare occasions, but I can see
God every day, as I open His Word, communicate with Him, fellowship
with others, etc. Oh, to be so thrilled to see the living God and His
magnificence every day and throughout the day, as I did with Fuji
today! And, to be so enthused that nothing can stop me from asking
everyone I meet, "Have you seen *HIM* today?!"
I also thought of the cold, biting wind. It brought discomfort and was
at times painful if I weren't standing in the sun or well-protected.
But that very hardship is what allowed me to see the beauty of Mt. Fuji
so clearly and all day long. How similar that is to our spiritual
lives. How often the trials allow us to see God more clearly and more
fully.
Thanking God for a day full of Fuji-sightings and what they taught me,
and praying for more God-sightings in my daily life,
~J
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