finish what you started

There’s an old song by The Imperials entitled, “Finish What You’ve Started.” It goes a little something like this:

Finish what You’ve started in me. I like what I see. Finish what You’ve started in me Lord. Well, I love, I love what You’re doing in me … Finish what You’ve started. I know You will in me Lord …

Indeed, it’s a great promise from the Lord. For, “he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

IF THE LORD ALWAYS FINISHES THE WORK HE BEGINS IN US, SHOULD WE NOT ALWAYS FINISH THE WORK WE BEGIN FOR HIM?

Of course we should, and that’s why I have been slogging out here under the hot sun in Montana. You see, Team Yeshua began a work for the Lord of carrying the cross from downtown Missoula with the aim of connecting with #TheLongWalkUSA main route at its closest point, Seeley Lake. It is a spur route of about 60 miles, and by the time we departed for India, they had accomplished about half of it. It was a lot more work than expected, involving city blocks, steep trail, busy highway, and dusty gravel roads along the Blackfoot River. We had to navigate rain, hail, thunder, and lightning … and yet, there were Gospel encounters along the way.

If things had gone according to plan leaving India (i.e. absent flooding, landslides, Himalayan cloudbursts, and road washouts in Manali), we should have been able to finish this leg with the few days in Montana that were to end our team’s term of service. But, things didn’t go according to plan, and 34 miles remained on this spur after everyone safely returned home..

I was blessed to have my daughter Charlotte fly out to SAG for me as I finished every mile of highway asphalt in Madison County and endeavored to complete the unfinished 34-mile gap from Missoula to Seeley Lake. There were 3 hard days of slogging on the tail end of a bout of pneumonia and, aside from the honks and waves of passing motorists, very few Gospel encounters. And yet, by God’s abundant grace, we finished what was started. Charlotte even stepped in for me at the end as I battled a terrible cough. She thus surpassed 100 total miles herself on #TheLongWalkUSA.

Saturday was an incredible bluebird autumn day here in Montana, not a cloud in the sky. Charlotte and I set out to climb Lolo Peak and thereby set an anchor point for next summer’s Team Yeshua. Now, the cross-walking spur from the main route in Seeley Lake to downtown Missoula can be extended from downtown Missoula to the Lolo Trailhead and on to the Idaho line. That should be a fun training segment for next year’s team ahead of high-altitude labor in Peru.

What we thought would be a leisurely 12-mile stroll on mellow trail actually turned into a 15-mile off-route slogfest—surprise, surprise. Like her sister and brother, Charlotte was a machine and didn’t utter a word of complaint. After Carlton Lake, the old trails disappeared, undoubtedly unmaintained in recent years. When we finally summitted North Lolo (9,099 ft.), the highest point in Missoula County, the views were incredible. Charlotte opted for a nap in the sun as I ran the 3/4 of a mile down to a saddle and up to the summit of Lolo (9,140 ft). The slog back to the car was drudgery, and every creature in the surrounding forests must have thought I had tuberculosis. But, we made it just before dark and just in time to grab some red meat in the town of Lolo before a favorite spot of mine closed for the evening.

Most memorable, however, were two Gospel encounters we had with locals from Missoula, not exactly conservative-minded folks. And yet, both Jojo (camping alone out there) and a couple about my age were very open to the things I shared concerning the Lord and the spiritual problems of our nation. Jojo, who sent 3 years in India herself and was familiar with Ladakh, asked why I had taken a team to South Asia this past summer. I responded straightforward: “Well, we love Jesus, and we simply want to tell others in far off places about Him.” I thought that would end the conversation, but it didn’t. She surprisingly responded, “I’m not a Christian, but I know some Christians and they are good people.” I then gave her one of my trekker tracts and encouraged her to read it later that night in her tent, to contemplate why I chose the path of Jesus and not manmade religion. She promised she would do so and gave us some helpful information about how to get back down to the lake.

Folks don’t buy into the political dichotomy. People need Jesus, and those you would never expect to be so are often more open to the things of the Lord than those who vote like you do. America has spiritual problems, and spiritual problems cannot be fixed with political solutions. We must remember that.

Later, near the summit of Carlton Ridge, I found myself sharing with Ben and his girlfriend about what happened to me in Madison County … and yet in a very different way than which I had been accustomed to do before. It wasn’t in a spirit of righteous indignation or just rebuke, but in joyful testimony. I spoke of how the LORD takes what men mean for evil and turns it to great good. Ironically, I found myself speaking of how much I love Montana and how that the GOD who made the mountains of Montana is indeed real and exactly what the Holy Scriptures testify him to be. I had a copy of my book “Rotten at Heart,” and Ben gladly received it. I chuckle even now that in speaking of Madison County to these folks, I barely gave passing mention to the Dream Drift Yay-Hoo or his dirty cop buddies. They are so secondary in what the Lord has done. The facts remain unchanged, the details remain unchanged, but the testimony has indeed flowered and overshadowed the players who thought to overthrow our work for the Lord. Hebrews 12:11 calls this “the peaceable fruit of righteousness.” It’s sheer profundity that in my exhaustion, I defaulted to telling these folks how thankful I was for what happened to us, thankful to God for taking a trial and turning it into a great blessing.

With that in mind, I am truly sad to pull out of our Team Yeshua base here in Missoula for the last time. And yet, there is peace in knowing that we were able to finish what was started here this summer and secure some things for doing it all over again a year from now. Praise the Lord for the doors that have opened in that regard.

Bidding a Final Farewell to our Team Yeshua base in Missoula, Montana

He who begins a good work in us always finishes what He started. Let’s make sure we finish what we start from Him! Today, we’ll head a bit north where, Lord willing, I aim to finish another cross-walking spur Team Yeshua started up in Glacier National Park. I have a great SAG driver alongside, so I may as well bust it out. 18 miles of Going-to-the-Sun road remain from Logan Pass to St. Mary. That incredibly scenic road will close for the season soon after the first snow. Our plans to walk that route earlier in the summer were derailed by the fatal accident we witnessed from the Haystack Butte saddle. I’ll be carrying Brian Astle’s shoe as I slog those 18 miles of asphalt, a reminder to continue praying for his widow and orphaned children. We attempted to reach out many times after that fateful day and offered to return the shoe. I never received a response, and I guess that’s understandable. Prayers much appreciated.

Lord, finish what You started in us, and help us to finish what we start for you, even if it seems a waste of time devoid of much immediate fruit!