The hot wind blew sand as if I was standing in front of a sand blasting machine. The bandana that covered my face just below my eyes was saturated with sweat and covered in the fine sand blowing out of the Borrego desert. The goggles covering my eyes had become pitted over the last two weeks of never-ending Santa Ana winds. Yeah, it was just another day working on the Borrego Springs Water Treatment Plant project that my partner and I had taken on.
We as a company had never landed such a large project and now, we were finding that our bid had been lowered than the costs we were incurring. So, it was necessary that he and I do a majority of the work while employing a few of our crew members from San Diego. No one ever said owning a company was going to be fun, but this was a little ridiculous!
It was just about 4:00 and as I came down from the rebar wall curtain we had just erected I called to Dave, my partner, “Let’s call it for today! I need to shake and clean the sand out then find me a cold beer.” I could see Dave had no problem with this and confirmed it with an affirmative shake of his shaggy head. I gave the crane operator the hand signal to ‘dog it off’, shut his rig down and face it into the wind for the night. With that I headed to the camp we had set up near the project parking lot. Being low on money meant living accommodations were four sleeping tents and a large one for cooking grub, eating and also served as our bar. The Water Treatment Plant had shower facilities for their employees and had allowed us usage and that is where I headed. I would be ten pounds of sand lighter after a nice long shower.
After showering I entered the large tent and headed to the cooler which served as our refrigerator and grabbed a cold Rainer beer. In one motion I yanked off the pull tab and tilted the can, so I could drink it down in a few large gulps. As with everything I could feel the grit of sand on my teeth and down my throat as I drank. As I lit the camp stove and opened a can of pork and beans, I wondered how much sand I had swallowed in the last two weeks, I was sure I would never be rid of the stuff. It was in my sleeping bag and had crept into my duffle mixing with my clothes. There was no respite from it. How long would the Santa Ana’s blow?
As I stirred the beans, I heard the tent zipper being opened. Another gust of hot sand drifted in and seemed to increase the already stifling heat in the tent. Dave grabbed a beer and dropped his bulky body down on the bench of the camp table. He said in a low voice, “John, I think I am heading back to San Diego tonight. I just called Petey and he will be here in the morning to take my place. I need to get some book work done and see how things are going in the city.” Already sweaty and gritty I was in no mood for this conversation. I knew the reason he was heading home, and it had nothing to do with business. The wind and the sand were driving all of us crazy but why him instead of me. As I shook my head and did not look at him, I knew the reason, he had owned this company before me and still considered me a junior partner. In the end he would head back to the city and I would stay and do the job, Santa Ana winds or not. I just reached for another beer and said nothing. I would be drinking myself to sleep tonight so I did not have to listen to that moaning wind.
Have you ever thought about the amazing power of the wind? I know living here in hurricane and tornado country most folks understand it. Working outdoors for over 40 years throughout this country I have experienced its power in so many different ways. Facing hot blown terrors of the Santa Ana’s, in the mouth of the fierce canyon winds of northern Utah and the howling blizzard winds of the Great Plains. There is nothing quite so awe inspiring and powerful as being in the midst of the winds on this planet.
So why all the hoopla about wind this morning? It was inspired and that is the only word I can use by my morning devotional, a compilation of the writings of Ellen G. White about the Holy Spirit: “Ye Shall Receive Power”. And though I don’t normally do this I am going to place this entire devotion for today at the end of this blog.
Before I do, for those who are curious. I did remain in the Borrego desert for two more weeks of intense Santa Ana winds. Eventually they receded, and we finished the project. But I will never forget the fierceness of that wind. Nor will I ever forget the gentleness of God’s ‘wind’ as He brought me to Jesus, so well said in the following. Enjoy this devotion.
January 7- The Unseen Wind (Ye Shall Receive Power)
The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so, it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit. John 3:8, RSV.
The wind is heard among the branches of the trees, rustling the leaves and flowers; yet it is invisible, and no man knows whence it comes or whither it goes. So, with the work of the Holy Spirit upon the heart. [The Spirit] can no more be explained than can the movements of the wind. A person may not be able to tell the exact time or place, or to trace all the circumstances in the process of conversion; but this does not prove him to be unconverted.
By an agency as unseen as the wind, Christ is constantly working upon the heart. Little by little, perhaps unconsciously to the receiver, impressions are made that tend to draw the soul to Christ. These may be received through meditating upon Him, through reading the Scriptures, or through hearing the Word from the living preacher. Suddenly, as the Spirit comes with more direct appeal, the soul gladly surrenders itself to Jesus. By many this is called sudden conversion; but it is the result of long wooing by the Spirit of God—a patient, protracted process. While the wind is itself invisible, it produces effects that are seen and felt. So, the work of the Spirit upon the soul will reveal itself in every act of him who has felt its saving power. When the Spirit of God takes possession of the heart, it transforms the life. Sinful thoughts are put away, evil deeds are renounced; love, humility, and peace take the place of anger, envy, and strife. Joy takes the place of sadness, and the countenance reflects the light of heaven. No one sees the hand that lifts the burden, or beholds the light descend from the courts above. The blessing comes when by faith the soul surrenders itself to God. Then that power which no human eye can see creates a new being in the image of God. It is impossible for finite minds to comprehend the work of redemption. Its mystery exceeds human knowledge; yet he who passes from death to life realizes that it is a divine reality. The beginning of redemption we may know here through a personal experience. Its results reach through the eternal ages. —The Desire of Ages, 172, 173.
Blessings John,
1/7/19
