The Beauty of Banff

“You may look and study and ponder, but Jesus is a greater Savior than you think Him to be even when your thoughts are at their best.” – C.H. Spurgeon

Last month, my son Chris invited me to join him on a company-sponsored trip to Banff, Canada. Chris had earned the free vacation by meeting certain sales goals with his investment firm, AmeriLife, and since his wife Rachael couldn’t go with him due to a delay in her Nigerian passport, I was the last-minute replacement.

I had heard about how beautiful Banff is, but nothing could have adequately prepared me for the breathtaking scenery of western Canada. The drive from the Calgary airport to Banff started out fairly nondescript with a very flat landscape, but as we drove west, we began to see some elevation changes. Soon, the 14,000-foot Canadian Rockies came into sight and my jaw dropped in utter amazement.

Snow – and even glacier-covered – mountains with jagged peaks… crystal clear mountain streams… and acre after acre of towering evergreens. Simply spectacular! However, the best was yet to come.

One morning, we took a tour bus to Lake Louise and Moraine Lake, and I have never seen water those colors in my life. Deep blues and turquoise greens that defied description, all fed by melting snow. I snapped dozens of pictures just to remind myself of the gorgeous sights and God’s incredible creation. I also wanted to prove to my friends back home that it wasn’t all computer-generated!

My friend, the point that Charles Spurgeon is making in today’s quote is that we can try our best to describe the greatness and glory of Jesus Christ and how wonderful a Savior He is, but our best and most well-intended attempts are sure to fall desperately short of the “real deal”. Someday in heaven, when we see Jesus with our own eyes and fall prostrate at His feet, we will finally be able to partake of all that He is and all that He has done on our behalf.

Likewise, the absolute and indescribable beauty of heaven will defy our human imagination… and make the Canadian Rockies look like a landfill or an inner-city slum. Best of all, our trip to glory will be an all-expenses-paid one, the price tag being the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

“Rather, as it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.’” I Corinthians 2:9 (BSB)

- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President