I love roller-coasters. I didn’t always, but that was only because I had been too scared to try. When I was pretty young, my dad, of all people, talked me into riding one called “The Shockwave” at Six Flags in Arlington, TX. It was a double-loop, which back then was about as scary as they came. Nowadays, a double-loop is mild compared to some that twist you around and upside down as many as sixteen times. However, my dad’s argument for having me try it was this: “If you try this one and like it, you’ll probably like all of the other roller-coasters here!” Sure enough, after what seemed like waiting for hours, we made our way onto the car, and strapped in.
As the coaster train began to move out, I remember very clearly having some major second-guessing going on in my head, but I figured since my dad talked me into it, and he was right there with me, I was probably going to be okay. We slowly made the first climb towards the sky, and I promise you, I passed a few angels sitting on clouds just shaking their heads. The train dipped forward and we began to plummet towards our impending death. Just when I knew I was surely going to meet my Maker, an amazing thing happened: the train began to climb up into the loop. The track held us, and my world was suddenly, and literally turned upside down.
While I was being tossed about and lifted and dropped, I began to experience the exhilaration that comes with and adrenaline-boosting ride. I was very quickly transformed into a roller-coaster junkie, and now my mantra is that I will try it once, no matter how high, how upside-down, or how fast the thing goes. So far, I haven’t chickened out once.
Many people relate life with a roller-coaster ride. With the ups and downs we face, and sometimes the blind dips and dives we go through, it’s not a bad comparison. Some people love the unknown and really enjoy the challenges that life throws at them. For those, it’s exhilarating. For others, it’s very rattling, jarring, and even painful. The stress that it puts them under can leave them wishing for the very gentle and predictable kiddy train ride.
In either situation, I think back to my first ride. I was very apprehensive, but I was riding with my dad. Our Heavenly Father doesn’t leave us to take this ride by ourselves. He’s right there with us, and never leaves us alone. (Joshua 1:5, Matthew 28:20) The other thing about roller-coasters is that there is always a track. Even if you don’t see it, and the twists and turns seem to come out of nowhere, there is a design. Engineers spent a great deal of time and energy designing every detail of that track. Similarly, there is a God who knows every drop-off and climb that our life will take. Even when our track takes us to dark places, God has already been working to move that track to higher ground.
Life is not always the thrilling ride that we like at Six Flags. Sometimes it is terrifying and leaves us looking forward to the end of the ride. We must remember that we are not riding alone, and we are not free-falling at random. There is a track for us, and God will continue working to bring us closer to Him. It is our job to trust Him and follow where He leads so that we may experience all that this life has to offer, until we reach the eternal life that is promised to His Followers.
Until that day, strap in, take a deep breath, and look at your Father next to you to gain comfort and peace in the unknown.
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