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Confidence Rightly Placed
Recently, I came to the end of my backpacking skills. As I faced terrain that was new and difficult, I found myself desperately depending on the Lord for everything. My fear of slipping, tripping, falling, and even collapsing hurled me at the feet of Jesus. Praying to, singing about, and reflecting on Him enabled me to endure the physical, emotional, and mental challenges. “And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, and makes me walk on my high places” (Hab 3:19) pounded through my mind and heart multiple times. I wasn’t hiking Mount Everest, but this trail was my high place! Fear is common to humans. Fear can come…
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Benefits of Being Outdoors
Backpacking in the backcountry for 10 days in July left me with a new appreciation for the outdoors. I observed many parallels to life on my trek. In addition, watching teenage boys adapt to the backcountry left me with an awareness of the benefits of youth being outdoors. When I returned home, I found articles that articulated the benefits of being outside that I had observed. Various benefits arise from being outdoors. Claire McCarthy[1] lists the following as benefits: appreciation of nature, vitamin D from sunshine, exercise from active play, opportunity to take risk, socialization in unorganized atmosphere, and development of executive functions (skills that help us multitask, plan, troubleshoot,…
