My exploration on the mountain caused me to find myself at the lip of
the halfpipe with the gentleman across from me asking whether or not I
was going to go. With no time to think, I nodded in the affirmative and
dove in.

I had just learned how to ski properly (without crashing 2+ times every
run) and I didn't have enough time to think about how I would fare in
trick-territory. All I knew was that my adrenaline was pumping.

So, as I wiped out halfway down the halfpipe, I didn't notice that I
ripped my hand open on the icy incline. Though, as I rendezvoused with
Heather and Matt at the bottom, it became obvious that I was bleeding
kinda bad. So we went to the First-Aid lodge.

I thought the whole thing was both fun and funny. So, as the nurse was
finishing up other people before treating my hand, I sat there with my
feet kicking, all smiles.

Matt and Heather seemed to rather enjoy the circumstance as well.

But what really stuck out to me was the gentle touch of the nurse as
she put the Neosporin on my wounds. Immediately as this was happening,
a song by Wovenhand came to mind. The song, 'Truly Golden' has this
brilliant refrain: "He gives a woman's touch."

Now, I very rarely have physical interaction with women. So when I do, it's very loud to me.

This time, it really reminded me of how God's is so incredibly gentle
in discipline. The song is about how He chastises us, His loves, with a
woman's touch. There I was simply receiving medical attention, and this
God's feminine touch begins to take on a deeper sense of meaning to me.

I guess I just didn't realize how gentle a woman's touch can be.

The next day (on Sunday morning), Monte (my church leader), brought up
the subject of church bells and shofars. He asked, "What is the purpose
of a church bell?"

I realized that I never really thought about it. "What are church bells for?" I asked myself.

Monte had his Yemenite shofar (ram's-horn trumpet) in his hand when he
asked this question, so I knew the answer. It was a call to worship. A
loud one. One that interrupts the normal flow of things. I realized
that this is an odd thing: God uses a gentle woman's touch for
correction and a loud interrupting trumpet blast for when its time for
us to celebrate.

On that note, I think I hear some shofars and church bells...

'Truly Golden' by Woven Hand:
http://www.last.fm/music/Woven+Hand/_/Truly+Golden