Parables

Susan (Cho) Van Riesen has said some memorable things over the years, but I particularly remember two things that she said as a student and as a young InterVarsity staff member. First, she said that she had conversations with God where she would say something and He would answer. (My thoughts about interacting with God were revolutionized!) Second, she said that life was full of parables if we had eyes to see them. I was reminded of Susan's words during our recent vacation with the Parks family.

Parable #1

Two days before we left for Big Sur, our packing lists were set, but we were not sure what to do. Fires raged out of control in the area and sections of Highway 1 were closed to traffic. The campground was open, but smoke engulfed the coastal area. Should we travel to Big Sur only to be evacuated? Would the smoke make camping miserable? Should we change plans? We spent several hours disappointed and anxious about our ruined vacation. We desperately needed a few days in some kind of wilderness. The next day, when we decided to abandon hope of camping in Big Sur, Richard called us with amazing news: their friends had offered their condo in Mammoth to us for 5 nights, completely free. The condo had comfortable beds, a beautiful view of the mountains, and, our kids' favorite part, cable TV.

Parable #2
As we drove along Highway 395 from Mammoth to Tioga Pass, Caroline pointed out the results of a recent fire. On one side of the road, a wide swath of trees stood completely blackened. The fire had jumped the road and burned many trees on the other side as well. We looked to the left and right and noticed a pink ground cover that we first mistook for fire retardant. Looking intently, we saw that everywhere the burn area was covered in lovely pink flowers.

Sometimes God reveals mysteries and sometimes He just makes things as plain as day.