Mountain Cleaners

Philippians 4:7 -- "And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

image: The Dream Village by Danny Xeero

Nestled into one of the cliff  faces of Austria rests a beautiful little village with crisp edges, lush greenery, and ankle biting hikes. If you follow Scenic Walks Around The World by Reader's Digest - you'll discover this little hidden gem.

Following the narrator on film I found myself wanting to shop the internet for hiking boots and looking for ways to quickly reinstate my passport.

Hallstatt has got to be one of the most beautiful little villages on the planet.

image: travelbetweenthepages.com

Quiet and playfully lazy - the villagers of Hallstatt sit on park benches and drink up the sunshine, content to do nothing more than watch the giant swans chat it up on the glassy surface of the lake.  The ripples from the graceful birds are the only thing that disturb the reflection of the entire village on calm waters - unless you're lucky enough to take a boat out to the place and join in on the .... respite.

I have GOT to go there.

As the well-worn laces of the beat up shoes that belong to our tour guide crunch through the fall foliage on the village trail - our attention from the beauty that surrounds us is interrupted by a few men strapping into harnesses. After checking each other for what might be faults in the equipment, they give a grunt and ease down over the lip of the cliff's jagged edge. On the arm of each man is an old bucket and a chisel.

The safety of the villagers and tourists blissfully meandering through the village square below is entirely in the hands of the men scaling these rocky crags - these "mountain cleaners". They diligently check the mountain side for chips and cracks in the rocks and then break off any loose things that might fall and deliver some damage to the good people a few hundred or so feet below them. They catch this debris in their trusty buckets - and just like that, the day is quietly and painstakingly saved. The slow rhythm of Hallstatt can continue with nary a mishap.

image: Hallstatt - wikipedia.org

The mountain cleaners aren't really part of the hiking trail. They don't get a lot of recognition outside of those needing to pass them by as they hike through the mountains to the next village stop on the long and winding trails. But they are of great importance. They guard the village from harm - even though the village might not realize it.

The fragile balance that can exist between the emotional beat of our human hearts and the logic of the brain that often guides us can be compared to the village of Hallstatt. There is beauty and strength between the two - as we set our goal on Jesus Christ, but there is potential danger lurking just around the corner, as well. At any moment a life-rock might fall and conk one of us on the head. We don't know when this might happen. We may even be napping on one of those beautiful park benches that face the bubbling fountain in the village square.

Which is why we need a Mountain Cleaner.

image: imagine.com

In Proverbs we are told: above all else, guard your heart - for it is the wellspring of life. These words make even more since when we consider that it's the one place - deep within our muscle and bone - where our Lord takes up residence. In Philippians, we are given reinforcements in this quest. We know that we can place our safety squarely in the arms of God. HE and He alone - has what it takes to be our Mountain Cleaner. We don't always have to understand how or why events unfold in and around our lives - but we DO know that God holds a protective peace that surpasses our feeble understanding.

That is all I need to know.

When you step off the boat and onto the old concrete bulwark that allows you access to the sleepy little village of Hallstatt, you won't see the mountain cleaners as they dangle from their ropes and catch hazardous debris. But you will sleep better in the quaint little inns near the village square because you know they are out there - buckets dangling from their arms and trusty chisel in their hands.