DESPERATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
Climbing North America’s tallest peak, Denali (formerly Mt. McKinley), isn’t like climbing other mountains. Even experienced climbers of peaks in the 14,000′ range, like Mt. Rainier, aren’t automatically prepared to reach the Alaskan giant’s summit, at 20,308′. “We have seen a disturbing amount of overconfidence paired with inexperience in the Alaska Range,” the National Park Service wrote in a statement, citing the mounting number of deaths and serious injuries among Denali climbers in 2021. As an expedition’s days begin to run short, climbers are tempted to make the 7,000′ final ascent in a single day. Rangers said that many climbers get “desperation, impatience and summit fever,” causing them to take unwise risks to reach their goal.
DESPERATE FOR HEALING
In Capernaum, Jesus was thronged by people eager to hear Him teach—or desperate for Him to heal them. A father whose 12-year-old daughter had died begged Jesus to bring her back to life. So great was his faith in Jesus that even death was not a barrier. As Jesus went with him, a woman in the crowd was just as desperate. After suffering for 12 years with a medical condition, she reached out to Jesus as He passed, just to touch the edge of His cloak. Her faith too was so great that she believed He didn’t even have to notice her to provide healing. Both this woman and the bereaved father were rewarded for their faith—faithful risks allowed Jesus’ reach to work miracles.
Questions
- What’s the highest hill or mountain you’ve ever climbed?
- What’s the relationship between desperation and faith?
- Who in the biblical story do you most identify with? Why?
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