men
A for-men-only feature dealing with basic Christianity/by Lloyd Hamill
Down the Colorado
hidden rocks o f life. I don’t know what rocks are hard astride your pathway right now. Maybe it’s a problem you hardly dare admit to yourself. And if you’re like most men you’re determined to grit your teeth and plow right on through the situation. The only trouble with this approach is that it’s likely to be disastrous. Behind some o f the rocks on the Colorado are swirling holes where the water may be 15 to 20 feet lower than the rest o f the surface. My friend Floyd dropped into one o f these swirling holes once and his small rubber boat folded up like a jackknife. As powerful a swimmer as he is he couldn’t get to shore until he had been swept the full length o f the white-foam rapid. There are situations in life that are just too much for the average man. If he plunges ahead, things will fold up around him until he’s en gulfed in a situation he simply cannot handle. I think the reason most men plunge deter minedly ahead in an effort to solve the rocky situations that are a part o f life is that they just see no other way. They believe in God but aren’t sure how to come to God for help. This seems to be an universal stumbling stone. Yet it needn’t be. We have absolutely no other way o f knowing God except through the Bible. The solution o f how to come to God for help is as simple as reading any book o f instruc tions— in this case the book is the Bible. I f a man is really interested in divine help and in knowing that all his sins can be wiped out, then he’ll carefully read the Gospel o f John* and then the rest o f the New Testament. Jesus Christ said that He came that we might have life more abundantly. Once we determinedly come to Him for forgiveness then we automatically have access to divine help for every problem o f life. END-
DAy wife and I count Floyd and Cathy Henney o f La Crescenta, Calif, as two o f our finest friends. We’ve especially enjoyed camping trips together. They’re both active members o f the Sierra Club and have a deep appreciation for the out-of-doors. I’ve known Floyd for 13 years. He’s an all- around outdoor man even though he doesn’t like to either hunt or fish. He’s a top swimmer and an expert skiier. He’s one o f the Sierra Club’s better rock-climbers. He’s prospected in Alaska and shot the treacherous rapids o f the Colorado in a rubber boat with 120° winds blasting up the canyon. After several trips through the Colorado his skill was put to use by Georgia White. She runs tours down the Colorado and two years ago she hired Floyd to guide one o f the big rubber boats. I found out something from Floyd about the Colorado that has a rock-solid spiritual applica tion. He says the most dangerous time to go down the Colorado is not when the water is turbulently high but when it is low. High water takes the boats over hidden rocks that are a stark dread to any good boatman. And so with our spiritual life. If our spiritual level is low then the rocks o f life will eventually destroy us. None o f us can escape going through situa tions that are studded with conflicts. This holds true for the man who has come into a proper relationship with God through Jesus Christ and for the man who has not yet had such an exper ience. Life is that way. The rocks are there. The hot winds blast full in our face. But for the man who has taken Jesus Christ into his life there is one vast difference. Like the turbulent Colorado at high water stage, a high spiritual life will see a man over the
*A free copy of The Gospel of John (with explanatory guide by Lloyd Hamill) will be sent free to any seeker or new convert asking for it.
The King's Business/July 1958
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