By Chappy Jack
July 1, 2019
Mile: 1293.8
Location: Delaware Water Gap, Penn.
Miles to Katahdin, Maine: 898.2
Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliver. My God is my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
“Rocksylvania” has lived up to it’s name among AT hikers as a state filled with rocks. Big, medium, small, and sharp, littered over countless miles on the trail. These rocks bruise feet, twist ankles, and trip hikers as they make their way across 227 miles of Pennsylvania. Hikers have left the trail from injuries or from relentless foot pain.
If anything could make up for the Pennsylvania rocks, it would be the people of Pennsylvania. They have been warm, kind, and generous. Trail magic (often in the form of much needed water, sodas, or Gatorade) has been plentiful. In one day alone, trail magic occurred three times!
Psalm 18:2 is one of my favorite scriptures. In times of stress or trouble, I like to imagine that Christ is like a huge Boulder that I am clinging to.
My feet are currently swollen and painful, but as I plod across “Rocksylvania,” I call to mind Psalm 18:2 and that “the LORD is my rock.”
Lord Jesus, I thank you that you have kept me free from injury. I pray that your peace would be upon those hikers that have left the trail because of injuries or pain. Please protect hikers as they hike across “Rocksylvania.”
Tomorrow, I cross into New Jersey! The rocks don’t stop at the state line, but I hear that they end soon!
Thank you for your ministry, Chappy Jack. It looks like the Rocks of Peann also are hard on shins as well as shoes and feet. Take care.
You just need the helmet of salvation.