Of course it’s not possible to identify a time when God wasn’t with the team in Peru, but unfortunately as humans we desire to feel an experience in order to determine or prove it’s validity. On the Inca trail thru the Andes mountains, it was easy to experience God and realize I was in His presence. Certain parts of the trail were literally on the edge of the mountain and the ground below was 50+ feet away and consisted of a very steep grade that plummeted 600+ feet down where it either hit the river or the base of another mountain. We were in the midst of giants. The mountains towered over and around us, and the visibility of the giants across the ravine or several miles down was crystal clear. The sites were awesome, in every sense of the word: the mountain sides, the incredible peaks, the altitude, the cloud forest forming around us as we persisted towards the rumored campsite, and the sunsets. God’s presence was evident, as His power and glory radiated from the sites.

On the last day of the hike, before eventually descending into Machu Piccu, I noticed little magenta flowers growing out of the mountain sides. I stopped at one in particular. This plant was huge, and had long branches – yet only one flower; one tiny magenta flower in the middle of one of the branches. I was very curious, so I paused for a minute… and thru the mystery and significance of that tiny flower, I had an epiphany. I experienced the awesome reality of nature the day before, this tiny flower in the middle of a bush on a mountain that day, and yet here I was – in God’s image with the Holy Spirit indwelling me. God knows the number of hairs on my head, just as He knows the placement and wellbeing of that flower. But God doesn’t just know my physical attributes, he knows my innermost thoughts – my whole being. He doesn’t just know me, but He loves me. In fact, He loves me perfectly – He could love no more and no less… the same way as He loves Christ.

It’s in those private times of reflection that we come back to our own specific realizations. I sought out to learn more of God’s love, and ended up realizing that nature and God’s creation is beautiful, but the fact that God loves us in spite of ourselves… that’s awesome.