GRAND CANYON ~ Life's Journey 2

You've got the dream to backpack the Grand Canyon; but what is your next step? Your life may be full of dreams, but very few will become reality unless you take action. Make sure every step of the way is covered in prayer and directed by God.

Couch potatoes never hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon.
1. PRAYER
You will develop skills and grow more into a leader, by planning your own trip. It is important to make sure, that God is giving you His blessings; and not to run ahead of Him. Involve God! Allow Jesus to make your decisions. Pray! Allow the Spirit of God to tell you yes or no.

"Man's steps are ordained by the LORD..." Proverbs 20:24
2. RESEARCH
The more knowledge you have, the more likely your adventure will be successful. Your Grand Canyon research may include:

• Visiting the Grand Canyon, taking pictures, talking to rangers, backcountry office and checking out trailheads.
• NPS.org ~ online research for the Grand Canyon
• Other Grand Canyon sites on the Internet, personal, commercial, and tourist
• Purchase maps ~ National Geographic
• Build a library of Grand Canyon books.
• Watch Grand Canyon DVDs, IMAX movies & CD ROMS.
• Talking with friends who have hiked the Grand Canyon

3. SOLO or TEAM After praying and doing your research, you'll need to decide who all is going. Are you backpacking alone? Are you inviting others.
4. DECISIONS A decision must be made, what month are your going to backpack the Grand Canyon.
5. APPLY FOR A BACKCOUNTRY PERMIT You need to go online to NPS.org, and visit the Grand Canyon National Park site. You can download a form to request campsites and dates. You can either visit the backcountry office in person, mail it in or send a fax.
6. EXERCISE You need to get your body in shape. Push yourself, and make sure you take many hikes before you leave for the canyon.
7. BACKPACKING Take your backpack out and go camping during the Summer. Find out how much you can carry and what you can eliminate. The Grand Canyon should never be your first backpacking trip.
8. PLAN MENU Buy backpack food, or stuff from your supermarket and taste test it. It would be horrible to carry a meal, that tasted disqusting.
9. GEAR Round up your backpack and gear. It is good to go shopping for items you need, months before your trip. Get a postal scale and weigh each item.
10. BOOK SHUTTLE, & MOTEL Once you have your permit in hand, it is time to book your transcanyon shuttle, and motel rooms for before & after.
11. PREPARE YOUR VEHICLE You would hate to have your car break down on the way to the canyon. Make sure you have good brakes, tires, belts, new fluids, hoses, and an oil change.

Grand Canyon ~ Life's Journey

What does it take to plan a Grand Canyon, Rim to Rim backpacking adventure? And what are life's lessons we can learn? In this series we will take you from dream to reality.

DARE TO DREAM
Perhaps you were visiting the North Rim, and you walked out to an overlook point. Your breath was taken away. Visitors from other countries were shooting pictures. A raven sours to a pinion tree below. On the horizon, you see the South Rim in the distance. Feeling a cool breeze, you hear others talking about hiking down the canyon. Curiosity merges, "What is it like down there?" A desire, rushes into your head and motivates a wild dream. "I would like to hike the Grand Canyon, from the North Rim to the South Rim."
APPLICATION
During your LIFE's JOURNEY, have you ever had a dream of what you would like to do? A dream of where to live, what occupation to pursue, or what ministry God is leading you into. How do you pursue this dream? How can you journey to make it reality? Or how can you plan your Rim to Rim backpacking trip?
"...And your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;"            Acts 2:17 NAS

MOSES

PRIDE BUSTERS 

"Now the man Moses was very humble, 

more than all men who were on 

the face of the earth." Numbers 12:3 NKJV

God used a humble man, Moses to lead the nation of Isreal out of the bondage of Egypt..

"Then He said, "Hear now My words:
If there is a prophet among you, I the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision, And I speak to him in a dream. Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings, And he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid To speak against My servant Moses?" 

Numbers 12:4-8 NKJV

God speaks to His prophets by dreams and visions. But the LORD spoke directly to His servant Moses. 

"No one has seen God at any time..." I John 4:12 NKJV

"Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus," Hebrews 3:1 NKJV

Jesus is our Apostle and High Priest.

"...who was faithful to Him who appoint Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end." Hebrews 3:2-6 NKJV

God used Moses mightily, because he was the most humble man on earth. Are you humble?

Or are you full of pride?

DAVID AND GOLIATH

PRIDE BUSTERS

God chose a humble person, David, to defeat the proud Goliath.

"Now the LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go; I will send you to Jesses the Bethlehemite, for I have selected a king for Myself among his sons." 

I Samuel 16:1 NASB

The Lord sent Samuel the prophet to anoint and select a king.

"So Samuel did what the LORD said, and came to Bethlehem. And the elders of the city came trembling to meet him and said, "Do you come in peace?"
He said, "In peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice."
He also consecrated Jesses and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice."
I Samuel 16:4-5 NASB

Samuel spoke to Jesses' sons.

"Then it came about when they entered, that he looked at Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed is before Him."

But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

Then Jesses called Abinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, "Neither has the LORD chose this one."

Then Jesses made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen these." And Samuel said to Jesses, "Are these all the children?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, and behold, he is tending the sheep."
Then Samuel said to Jesses, "Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here." So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with beautiful eyes and a handsome appearance. And the LORD said, "Arise, anoint him; for this is he."
Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of is brothers; and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward.
And Samuel arose and went to Ramah."
I Samuel 16: 6-13 NASB

"Now the Philistines gathered their armies for battle;..."   I Samuel 17:1 NASB

"The Philistines stood on the mountain on one side while Israel stood on the mountain on the other side, with the valley between them.
Then a champion came out from the armies of the Philistines named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span."
I Samuel 17:3-4 NASB

"He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, "Why do you come out to draw up in battle array? Am I not the Philistine and you servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me. If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will become your servants; but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us." Again the Philistine said, "I defy the ranks of Israel this day; give me a man that we may fight together."
I Samuel 17:8-10 NASB

Jesses had David deliver some food and supplies to his brothers on the battlefield and heard Goliath's speech.

"When all the men of Israel saw the man, they fled from him and were greatly afraid. The men of Israel said, "Have you seen this man who is coming up? Surely he is coming up to defy Israel. And it will be that the king will enrich the man who kills him with great riches and will give him his daughter and make his father's house free in Israel."
I Samuel 17:24-25 NASB

"Then David spoke to the men who were standing by him, saying, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?"
I Samuel 17:26 NASB

David went to battle with no armor and the only weapon he had was a sling and five stones.

"Then the Philistine came on and approached David, with the shield-bearer in front of him. When the Philistine looked and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, with a handsome appearance.
The Philistine said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?" And the Philistine also said to David, "Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the beasts of the field."
Then David said to the Philistine, "You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted. This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD's and He will give you into our hands."
I Samuel 17:43-47 NAS

"And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground."
I Samuel 17:49 NASB

"Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his had with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled."
I Samuel 17:50-15 NASB

Goliath was a classic example of arrogance, intimidating the people of Israel. 

To defeat this spirit of pride, God anointed a humble shepherd boy.

WHICH ONE ARE YOU?  Do you stand in pride like Goliath, bad mouthing God's people?

Or are you humble like David, defending his people?