Don’t Be Scared of Heights

​​​by Adam Kronberger / Head of School

A couple of years ago I knew our house was in dire need of a paint job.  As a former painter, I knew I would certainly not employ another for the job.  The big challenge was that our house sits on a ridgeline and some of its peaks are 30 feet above uneven sloping ground.  I did the math and determined that investing in scaffolding to do the job myself would still leave us money ahead, with a direct hand in quality control.  Besides the typical painting supplies, the final purchase included a safety harness.

A safety harness, when anchored to a secure high point, provides a safeguard against the risk of a fall from dangerous heights.  The design, while not focused on comfort, provides a shock-absorbing lanyard that spreads out any potential fall over 6 feet of increasing tension (kind of like a parachute).  While still potentially painful and shocking, the harness basically “catches” you as you fall. 

Even when harnessed to a secure point, there were many moments on the top level of the swaying scaffolding that I would be frozen in fear.  In those moments it seemed like the completion of the job was just too big for me.  I would feel like giving up.  But my motto became “Simply focus on the next thing...the next step, the next handhold, the next brush stroke.”  Those thoughts must have been repeated in my head thousands of times, and you know what, the entire house got painted!  

Sometimes we might find ourselves in crises that seem overwhelming.  Despite the Lord’s promises and eternal safety He provides, we can become frozen in fear.  Do your current circumstances have you hanging on for dear life?  Consider reading the book of Acts this month.  Allow the narrative of God’s intentional hand of faithfulness in the life of Paul to give context to your situation.  As you find comfort in the testimony of the safety we have in Christ, continue reading through Paul’s letters to the churches (right after the book of Acts) to take your perspective to another level.  When Paul declares he can do “all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13), he is referencing all circumstances, especially the difficult ones.  With Christ, we can simply focus on the next thing He has for us as He is all we need.

While there is fortunately a limit to the heights of my house, there are heights God has prepared for you that you have yet to imagine.  If I had fallen when painting my house, I would have experienced a surprising and somewhat painful tension on my harness.  But I would have been safe!  Sometimes we fall, either because of our own doing or the fallenness of this world, and experience some pain and tension in our lives.  Most importantly, we remain safe.  Let us live out the prayer, “Father, let all circumstances work together for Your good and Your glory,”  and He will take us to heights unimaginable!
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– Adam Kronberger / Head of School