Hiking In Hawaii

Hey!

I was looking at some pictures from my honeymoon the other day. I was reminded of a really rewarding hike that we took near Waikiki Beach to Manoa Falls. This hike was one of our favorite on that trip.

Before I let you in on all the wonderful parts of this hike, let me share all the details: We were staying at a nice resort that allowed us a late checkout of 1:00pm. We would be boarding our ship for our cruise later that afternoon.

So, we woke up early and headed to the bakery and grabbed some yummy cheese danishes. We had our backpacks full of water, snacks, sunscreen, bug spray, extra socks and raincoats. We hopped onto the public bus with a song in our hearts. We headed to the end of the line where we then hiked about a mile through private neighborhoods before finding the trailhead. The trailhead was a bit sketchy, but we were sure this was the place and continued forward. At first, we were rewarded with a beautiful scene out of…well…the television show, “Lost”.

It was so beautiful and we were thrilled to see what lay ahead. We had talked with several locals and they recommended that this was one of the best waterfall hikes on this island and it only took about 30 minutes to hike. We really only had a few hours, because we needed to get our luggage out of the resort by 1:00pm, so we thought we would be able to hike a short 30 minutes easily.

We knew that rain was always present in Hawaii, but we hadn’t counted on a downpour during our hike. It only rained for about 10 minutes, but that was long enough. We pulled on our raincoats and hid under a really old Banyan tree. What we were left with was mud, mud, and more mud. I had mud in my hair, mud in my shoes, mud in places that frankly, mud should not be. There were places that the trial was nothing but mud and we were slipping and sliding up the side of hills to get to the waterfall. At one point we were ready to turn around and go back. It just didn’t seem like it would be worth it. We couldn’t see the waterfall in advance because of all the lush foliage. We had stopped for a water break and looked at our watches wondering if we would now make it back to the resort in time to take showers or not. There were just so many reasons to turn around and give up.

 

We didn’t give up. We plunged forward through the mud and finally made it to the top. We were rewarded with one of the most beautiful waterfalls on the islands. We enjoyed marveling at the great beauty that God hid away on this mountain in Hawaii. We were struck by the awesomeness of God in those brief moments next to the waterfall. What joy we would have missed if we had turned back.

 

All too soon, we had to leave and head down the slippery, muddy hillside to catch the bus to our resort. Yes, we did make it in time, but barely. I have never showered so fast in my life.

The point is that sometimes God allows discomfort in order to get us to the place of great joy. It wasn’t fun walking through all that mud, but the reward at the end was so beautiful!

I am asked often if I know why God has allowed this illness in my life. I can give an answer, but is an answer necessary? God allows rain on the just and the unjust…the saved and the unsaved. The questions should really be, why not me! Why should I not go through the rain or mud? The reward of going through the rain and mud will be so worth it! I have no doubt of that! God brings beauty from the ashes, joy for mourning, praise instead of a failing spirit…and in my case, health for sickness! I don’t know what the days hold, but I chose to hold onto the promise that I am in His faithful care!

Be encouraged…He loves you very much!

Until next time…