"Breath…"
"Then the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being." - Genesis 2:7
This past Sunday I returned from leading a 5 day Ministry Outdoor Adventures Foundation hunting event in Morton County, Kansas. It wasn't just 5 days of ministry, but 5 days in ministry literally out in the County itself, sun up to sun down, as well as a considerable amounts of time both before and after those daily bookends. They were 5 days filled with miles of walking under the largest blanket of uninterrupted sky Kansas has to offer. The sunrises felt as if they'd last forever and the sunsets left me wondering just how a once empty, pale-blue sky, could be filled with such contrasted, dramatic color.
Morton County is known as the "cornerstone" of Kansas and if you go there you'll soon realize why it is also known as Kansas's "Desert Southwest." It is arid and vast, and frequently wins the award for the driest (lowest annual precipitation) County in Kansas. In the 30's it was the epicenter for the Dust Bowl, and many of the people that live there now are the direct descendants of its survivors. They are people of deep faith, strong will, stern constitution, and indomitable spirit. They are also some of the kindest, most generous and hospitable people anywhere in the State of Kansas.
The ministry I led there is a ministry that provides short-term retreats for pastors, and those serving in ministry in their local church, centered primarily around hunting and fishing opportunities. Our goal, as a ministry, is to come alongside pastors and those serving in ministry to help them keep their eyes focused on Jesus and, in so doing, to ultimately help them stay true to their calling and to the fulfillment of the purpose for which God put them on this earth. Each day starts with prayer, and then concludes with a devotional and sharing time after supper.
Devotions on the last night culminated with a question for each attendee to answer. The overall theme of this particular event had been "listening to Jesus," and the last night's question was: "Try to summarize your experience of God during this trip with one word." And, what an amazing blessing it was to hear each guest share what their specific "word" was that summarized their experience, and then to hear them talk in turn about what it meant to them.
I was the last person to share. My word was "breath..." After saying it I let the word hang there for a moment, and then shared that for me, every time I get to Morton County, I feel like I can breathe. Maybe it's because Morton County finds me over four hours away from my daily drama…. Maybe it's because the land and sky are so wide-open and vast…. Maybe it's because there's literally nothing to stop the wind when it blows (and it blows a lot)…. Or, maybe it's because I know that when I'm there I'm closer to the mountains than I am to my home. Whatever the reason, the reality is that I literally breathe better in Morton County, more deeply, more vitally, more meaningfully. Like there is something that comes into me with each new breath that reminds me of both who I am and who I'm supposed to be. Being there, walking under that sky, experiencing the wide-openness of it all, feels to me like an elemental, formational, kind of experience, and it always reminds me of Genesis 2:7.
Early Sunday morning as I packed up to leave, as I went one last time out into the Morton County air, as I retrieved ground blinds, and closed gates…. I realized it had been as if I'd had the hands of Jesus on my shoulders, and He had looked deeply into my eyes, like I'd been just recently formed from the dust of the ground, and His breath had filled my lungs and prepared me to leave, and… for all that I must allow myself to return to.
Finding myself now at 57 years old, I asked myself as I took one last look, and closed my truck door… "Will this be my last time here, or will God bless me with a return trip? A time once again to be formed, held, filled, and breathed into, out in the extreme southwest corner of Kansas?"
Keep Your Eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2)
- Pastor Rob Schmutz, Ministry Outdoor Adventures
