I must have been about 9 or 10 years old when I found it.  It was like finding buried treasure in the garage!!  It was an old brown jumprope with wooden handles…probably belonging to my Dad or someone older back in their “younger days”!  But now it was mine! I tried jumping rope with it, but it was an adult size jumprope so that didn’t work out too well.  I played with it as best I could and eventually discarded it in pursuit of other backyard adventures.  It lost it’s thrill as quickly as I had found it.

Several days or maybe even weeks later I was climbing this low branch of one of our backyard pine trees when I was suddenly struck with an incredible idea.  I wonder if I could throw one end of that old brown jumprope over this tree limb and while hanging onto the handles…run down this little hill here and just fly!!!  It would be like a swing that I could hang onto.  With lightening fast speed, I reclaimed my abandoned treasure once again and put my plan into place.  It WAS AMAZING!!  It worked!  I’d hold onto the handles, run down the slope until there wasn’t any more earth beneath my feet, and just soar!!  It would pull me back again and with eager anticipation for my next flight, I would start over!  I had created this backyard bliss with just an old brown jumprope!

Then I noticed another tree next to the lawn that I could try!  Pulling down the jumprope, and running over to try out this new tree, I quickly began to swing from it like I had the other one.  Only this one was different in that it lacked the hill for speed, but I found I could fling my body up higher and even go a greater distance!  The whole thing was exhilarating and wonderful…wonderful that is, until something unexpected happened…something I had not planned for.

With one final take off, I was flying through the air…and my smile turned the other direction when I suddenly became aware of the fact that I was STILL soaring past the pull-back point!  I was holding both handles…but only one end was still connected to rope!  My handle had broken off and I was now flying high into the air!!  Yes, I know what you are thinking…that what goes up must come down!  And so I did.

I came crashing down onto the earth with such a THUD that it knocked the wind completely out my body (if you’ve ever had that happen, you know those strange sounds you make as you are trying to get air back in)!  Air regained, kind of sore and somewhat dazed…I stood to my feet just stunned.  “NOOOOO!”  That was it.  And just like that, my adventure was over.

I never “jumprope swung” again after that.  I don’t know if it was because I was scared to fall hard and get my wind knocked out again… or just that I’d lost my faith in wooden-handled jumpropes to hold me anymore…but whatever the reason, I’d never try again.

I was thinking of that yesterday morning.  I’d almost forgotten that memory…but God has a way of sometimes using past experiences to speak to us today.  I love that about Him!  So here it is:

I have to wonder to myself, how many adventures am I missing out on because I’m afraid of getting hurt, or because I’ve forgotten how to trust that God will protect me?  As a kid, I wasn’t afraid of anything…maybe just the dark.  Obviously not afraid of jumprope swinging!  😉 But somehow as I got older, I became more afraid.  I experienced other “falls” in life and so have become more guarded and unsure.  “Bad things have happened to me, God!!”  I will remind Him at times…but He’s also quick to remind me of ALL the GOOD things that have happened when I’ve chosen to trust Him as well. Do you know what?  Those FAR OUTWEIGH the bad.   There are a billion times more good than bad…so what’s stopping me?  Am I allowing fear to run the show here?  No…not anymore.  I’m choosing to trust God.

Lovingly, and tenderly…but without hesitation…God says not to fear.  He says that a lot…because we need to hear it a lot. He wants us to soar and feel the excitement of life with HIM!  Unafraid, and completely trusting in Him, I want to see where He takes me!  Someone get me a jumprope because I want to swing on THAT!  But unlike that old wooden-handled jumprope, I know God won’t break! 😉

“Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9