We visited Sinks State Park in Wyoming last week.
It's a scenic place, not unlike parts of the Colorado Rockies.
Just a few miles west of the town of Lander, Wyoming, the road rises and meanders into a lovely canyon.
If you didn't know any better you'd never know that the river that parallels the road holds a really cool secret: sometimes the river appears to have disappeared.
But it's still there. You just can't see it.
You see, for most of the year subterranean limestone channels allow the water to flow, unseen, down into the valley.
But during heavy rains or snow-melt, the channels cannot contain the extra amounts of water. The result is a visible river.
Occasionally, the underground limestone channels broaden out and the above-ground river "sinks" underground for several yards, only to re-appear with great force farther down the canyon. Over time, as the river gushes back above ground, it carves out limestone caverns.
If you're passing through the area in the summer, I recommend giving the place a look-see.
It's interesting: for much of the year you don't see the river. But you know it's there. Because you can clearly see the evidence of the river's past activity. The river hasn't gone away.
The river is doing the work that all rivers do: it's still flowing down the canyon into the lowlands, watering and nurturing farm and pasture land.
Have you ever thought about the Holy Spirit in these same terms?
At times you can see His activity.
Other times, not.
But you know He's there.
He may be doing something marvelous just under the landscape of your soul.
Or, at other times, He may burst forth and provide a glimpse, or even a panorama shot of the Kingdom.
In barren times, you may feel that He's not present. All you see is a dry river bed.
But the facts of His presence contained in the Bible reassure you that feelings aren't always the best indicators of God's nearness.
And as the years pass, you have come to see that even when the river sinks underground, it always reappears. Always.
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5 NIV Bible)
It's a scenic place, not unlike parts of the Colorado Rockies.
Just a few miles west of the town of Lander, Wyoming, the road rises and meanders into a lovely canyon.
If you didn't know any better you'd never know that the river that parallels the road holds a really cool secret: sometimes the river appears to have disappeared.
But it's still there. You just can't see it.
You see, for most of the year subterranean limestone channels allow the water to flow, unseen, down into the valley.
But during heavy rains or snow-melt, the channels cannot contain the extra amounts of water. The result is a visible river.
Occasionally, the underground limestone channels broaden out and the above-ground river "sinks" underground for several yards, only to re-appear with great force farther down the canyon. Over time, as the river gushes back above ground, it carves out limestone caverns.
If you're passing through the area in the summer, I recommend giving the place a look-see.
It's interesting: for much of the year you don't see the river. But you know it's there. Because you can clearly see the evidence of the river's past activity. The river hasn't gone away.
The river is doing the work that all rivers do: it's still flowing down the canyon into the lowlands, watering and nurturing farm and pasture land.
Have you ever thought about the Holy Spirit in these same terms?
At times you can see His activity.
Other times, not.
But you know He's there.
He may be doing something marvelous just under the landscape of your soul.
Or, at other times, He may burst forth and provide a glimpse, or even a panorama shot of the Kingdom.
In barren times, you may feel that He's not present. All you see is a dry river bed.
But the facts of His presence contained in the Bible reassure you that feelings aren't always the best indicators of God's nearness.
And as the years pass, you have come to see that even when the river sinks underground, it always reappears. Always.
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5 NIV Bible)
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