Stephen De La Vega

Angels Landing stands 1,488 feet above the valley floor at Zion National Park in Utah, United States. It is perched behind me in the photo. I stood on Scout Lookout , the turnaround point of my hike with my wife and son. There were good reasons we didn’t continue to Angels Landing:   1.     My son was only 10 years old at the time and one misstep could’ve been fatal. 2.     We would’ve had to file within a string of hikers, so the rest of the way would’ve been at the pace of the crowd. 3.     We were exhausted! Whew!   So, Scout Lookout was where we celebrated and looked forward to the remaining, mostly downhill, 1.9 miles. A 3.8-mile round trip doesn’t sound long, but this hike was strenuous. Very strenuous. The trail was 81% paved, but that doesn’t mean the steep elevation gain with an incline of up to 23 ° under nearly continuous sun exposure was easy. The only hike that was more difficult for me in terms of physical e...

  It’s July, a little late for resolutions, but it’s summer when many of us try to do something different, so here we go. Come with me on a journey to resolve. This is the beginning of a series that will keep us busy for several months. A series of resolutions toward which every Christian should strive. Since we’re in the Year 2024, these resolutions are drawn from every chapter 20, verse 24 of God’s Word – 15 total, 1 post at a time, in the order they appear in our Bibles. Here are the resolutions and Bible books. I will… 1.         Worship God Alone (Exodus) 2.         Be More Holy (Leviticus) 3.         Aim High (Numbers) 4.         Trust in God’s Strength (Judges) 5.         Nurture Quality Friendships (1 Samuel) 6.         Stand for God’s Government (2 Samuel) 7.         Follow God through Highs and Lows (1 Kings) 8. ...

I recently read Scripture at a friend’s wedding.   It was an honor for me to proclaim God’s Word to the wedding party and guests.   I could have declined or made excuses, and maybe even suggested someone else for the job, but weddings are exciting events!   Declining was furthest from my heart.   If you’ve been in a wedding, you know what I mean. I don’t think many of us would say we participated in a wedding ‘out of the goodness of our hearts.’   This is because it’s not so much a hardship as it is a privilege.   And the highest privilege, being a maid of honor or best man, isn’t really about what we have to offer.   It’s about who we are:   someone dear to the bride or groom. We are also dear to God – especially dear.  Do we serve Him with the same readiness and enthusiasm? Or do we bring stipulations and conditions? Do we hold off until there’s a task that matches our higher skill sets? Do we wait for someone to ask for our he...