Journey to Paradise

Because we wanted to add adventure to our vacation in Puerto Rico, we decided to take a trip to the Isle de Culebra, located 17 miles northeast of the main island. 

We rented a car near San Juan and tried to make the 10 am ferry to Culebra on Tuesday but we missed it by half an hour. We bought tickets for the following day, 10 am in the morning and the return trip to the main island leaving Culebra at 9:30 pm. 

On Wednesday, we were determined not to miss the ferry again. The staff recommended arriving one hour before departure. We were up at 5:45 am, quickly ate our hotel breakfast, packed our gear and lunch, and were on the road by 7:30 am. It takes over an hour to drive to the far eastern end of the island where the ferry is located. I grew nervous as we made two wrong turns adding to the length of our drive, but Google maps kept us on track.

At the last leg of our trip, we were stopped by police blocking the what seemed to be the only road that connected us to the ferry launch. It was now close to 9 am as we anxiously asked the policeman how to get to the ferry. He only spoke Spanish but somehow we managed to find the right detour. 

We parked the car and waited for a shuttle from the parking lot to the ferry. We were one of the last to board but we made it. It was an hour ride on the ferry. At the ferry dock, in the business section of Culebra, there was a street full of of vendors offering taxi rides, or jeep and golf cart rentals. We decided on a golf cart. Christina took the shuttle to the rental store, while I waited with our gear by the ferry dock. Half an hour later, Christina comes with a golf cart that was more complicated than we expected. Off we went to Flamenco Beach, bouncing hard with each rut in the road, and there were many! 

To our delight, Flamenco beach is perfect for a day trip. It had bathrooms and showers and cafes. We rented an umbrella and two chairs. As we waited for our turn to have the umbrella set up, I briefly considered that if we had stayed at our hotel, we could have been on the beach for hours already. Then I saw the beach.

It was beyond what we could capture on film. It was magnificent. Crystal water, white sand, green mountains in the distance. It was paradise beyond what we could see because there was so much that was NOT there. There were NO tall resort hotels, no electric wires, no sound of traffic or air planes. Only the gentle lapping of waves, chirping of birds and the occasional rooster crowing. 

As I walked the beach, I considered our long journey to this paradise. It had taken 5 1/2 hours. It included a wake-up before dawn, a long drive, wrong turns, and a detour that threatened the whole trip. Then there was a long boat ride, waiting for the rental golf cart, a ride through unknown narrow roads, dodging pot holes and chickens, not knowing in the end what we would find. It required patience and courage, determination, sacrifice and hope.

It was like all of life. I am confident of the Lord's promise, that we will someday be in an even grander eternal paradise with Him, but the journey of life is long and hard. It requires all those things: patience, courage, determination, sacrifice and hope. 

We didn't need to do it. There was a choice involved. We could have chosen to stay at the hotel. But then we would have missed it. 

Paradise is never nearby. It's not where everyone hangs out. It requires us to take the road less traveled. We must choose the hard thing and make the sacrifices it requires. We must do it afraid.

After our swim, we went to explore other beaches. We traveled up and down hills that resembled roller coasters, took several wrong turns but found two other beautiful beaches at sunset. We walked after we returned the golf cart and waited for our return ferry, drove home and crawled into bed after 1 am. It was a long day. But a wonderful one.

God has created incredible beauty but we have paved over it, strung electric wires around it, and built tall buildings blocking the view. To see His glory, the paradise He created, it is a long, hard journey. But as I closed my eyes that night I was grateful that I had the patience, courage, determination and made the sacrifice to go and see.

Also in life, I make sacrifices with hope that I will be with God in the Heavenly Paradise He has created. Even with the hard things, I look forward to the Joy of eternity with Him. Especially since we won't have to leave. 

Remind me of this, Beloved, when the road of life is full of danger, sorrow, pain, and uncertainty. Remind me of at the end, there is forever with You in Paradise.  

The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
    The skies display His craftsmanship.
Day after day they continue to speak;
    night after night they make Him known.
They speak without a sound or word;
    their voice is never heard.
Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
    and their words to all the world.  (Psalm 19:1-4)

When Our Feelings Don't Care About the Facts

Last night I watched a video featuring popular conservative commenter Ben Shapiro. At the end of his talk he took questions and one especially interested me. The question was: what will it take for Ben to convert to Christianity. I found his answer interesting because it seems his thought process is: I am a Jew, I have always been a Jew, all my forefathers were Jews, I have invested significantly in my faith and so it is hard to change. 

 

It sounds like the man who wrote the book Facts Don't Care About Your Feelings has been caught in the exact trap he has warned others about: 

Sometimes we find that our feelings are so strong that they don't care about the facts. 

But Ben is right, facts are important. Truth is important. Not "my truth" or "your truth" but The Truth. Whether or not Christianity is true is important. 

If Jesus was who He insisted He was, that is He was the Son of God, then what He taught is also true. Jesus predicted His death and resurrection to His disciples several times while He was with them. If Jesus died and rose from the dead as He had predicted, then He was who He said He was. 

The resurrection of Jesus is the lynch pin of Christian faith. Paul states if the resurrection is not true, our faith is in vain. But if Jesus did rise from the dead, then He really is the Son of God. This fact becomes even more important than life or death -- it is about eternal life or eternal death. 

Because there is no law we can follow that will admit us to heaven. We are all broken, doomed to fail over and over. An honest look at our own lives demonstrates this! We need someone outside of ourselves to save us. 

Jesus is the savior we need. He lived a perfect life because He was the Son of God. And then He paid the full penalty for our all sins when He died on the cross. All we have to do is believe: to accept Him as Lord and Savior. Then the Holy Spirit will fill us and conform us to the righteousness of Christ from the inside out. 

There are many proofs of His resurrection! The followers of Jesus wrote it down and their followers copied and copied their eye-witness accounts by hand and saved them over the centuries, so convinced they were of it's truth. Today we call their writings the New Testament. Many died a martyr's death because they refused to deny their earnest belief that Jesus rose from the grave! 

Ben is too wrapped up in and too invested in his religion to see this objectively. His feelings are overruling any of his openness to facts. His refusal to seek the truth is crucial not only for himself, but also for his children, and their children... 

Father, I am not exempt from this. May I always have my eyes open to see Your truth, Lord God! Help me to be one of Your witnesses to not only what Your have revealed in Your scriptures, but also what You have done in my life. You have changed me from the inside out. Praise Your Holy Name. 

 * * * * * * * 

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) 

 The Jewish leaders insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.” (John 19:7)

The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”  

“You have said so,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: From now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:63-64) 

They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.” (Mark 10:32-34) 

 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. (1 Corinthians 15:14) 

He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” (Acts 16:30-31) 

God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” (Acts 5:31-32) 

He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. (Acts 10:41)