On April 26 and 27, the Southern California chapter of Solid Rock gathered to share some sports drinks and the Gospel with other climbers at Joshua Tree National Park.
On Friday evening, several members gathered at the Black Rock campground. We enjoyed taking that evening to share with each other how God has worked in our lives and also swap some climbing stories.
Morning light brought a beautiful day and some more members. We were additionally blessed by having Pat Fitzgerald come from the Calvary Chapel in Yucca Valley to lead us in worship before we set out. All of us appreciated the great time of praise we had with Pat leading us and were quite sorry he couldn’t spend the entire day with us. Worship was followed by a brief message by Mark Allen; its always good for us to be reminded of the reason for our faith before we go share it with others.
We covered sports drink bottles with labels inviting climbers to find the “adventure that lasts”, donned the new Solid Rock t-shirts and set out for Echo Rock.
Echo Rock provided us with exactly what we were looking for, excellent climbing at a variety of ability levels, and plenty of climbers to share a drink with. Some of us set out to play on a little 5.6 route, while others climbed a 5.10a, but all of us looked for an opportunity to offer other climbers a drink.
The climbers in the area appreciated our sharing of ice cold drinks. Many had brought drinks along, but none had ferried coolers filled with ice to the base of the rock. The lure of a nice cold drink alone was enough for others to accept our offers. While no one directly inquired about the message, we had the great joy of sharing our blessings with others, and watching as they read the labels.
As the sun made its way down, we made our way back to camp for dinner. Dave Taylor, one of the pastors from Mark’s church, spent the day with us and shared some of his impressions on the day. Dave, although not a climber, did do some bouldering with us and observed our interactions with the other climbers. He offered encouragement to us, reminding us of the special calling we have to share God’s love with other climbers. What a great joy for us to be reminded by someone not closely affiliated to the climbing community of the great need of such a special group. (Keep up that bouldering though Dave, and we’ll make a climber out of you yet!)
The Lord’s Day began with a great opportunity to share His Supper around the breakfast table. Even blue Gatorade and ripped up bagels still serve as a great reminder of the sacrifice He made for us!
After packing up, we headed out to the Quail Springs area for some final climbing and sharing of sports drinks. Although we didn’t encounter as many climbers on this day, we did find opportunity to share a little more deeply with one climber what our group is about, and offer drinks to several others.
In the end, we give praise to God for the safety of the members, and thanks for the opportunity to have contributed to His work whether by sowing, watering, or however else he has chosen to use us. What greater weekend could we have had than climbing with brothers and sisters in Christ and sharing His goodness with other climbers.
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Report written by John Maynard
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