Aunt Rhodie's Mountain Adventure

“GO TELL AUNT RHODIE, GO TELL AUNT RHO-OH-DEEEE. GO TELL AUNT RHODIE, THE OLD GRAY GOOSE IS DEAD. GO TELL AUNT…”

And on and on and on my seven-year-old belted out. She brought Aunt Rhodie up and down the stairs into every room of the house. I’ll bet the old aunt got tired.

My twelve-year-old son had had enough. “Would you stop singing that song already?”

“NO, I can’t. You know our piano teacher said that if I sang the song it would help me play it better. I’m practicing! GO TELL AUNT RHODIE…”

My head was spinning with a combination of the loud melody and my son’s nagging.

“NOW--Ally, STOP! I’m trying to do my homework.”

“THE OLD GRAY GOOSE IS DEEEEEEEEEEEEEAD.”

My son tried a different approach. “Hey, Ally, who is Aunt Rhodie anyway?”

She ceased her melody. “How am I s’post to know who she is, Austin. I’m just a little kid.”

It was the perfect time for my nine-year-old daughter to take center stage, her voice projecting proudly. “IIIII know who Aunt Rhodie is…”

“Yeah, sure you do, Annie,” Austin smarted.

“I do,” she said proudly, “SHE’s the one who was comin’ round the mountain!!!!!”

My two daughters chimed in together while marching up and down the stairs on a mountain adventure of their own:

“SHE’LL BE COMIN’ ROUND THE MOUNTAIN WHEN SHE COMES. SHE’LL BE COMIN’ ROUND THE MOUNTAIN WHEN SHE COMES….”

Poor Austin. And poor, tired Aunt Rhodie with all that mountain climbing.

This scene, while a bit exaggerated for proper picture painting, gave me one of the best laughs I’d had in awhile. It also gave me a profoundly simple truth to chew on, which is this:

I sing God’s name, I write God’s name. I speak His name frequently and challenge others to do the same. But do I know WHO He is?

Friends, if someone were to ask you, “Who is the God you sing about anyway,” what would you tell them?

“My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, of Your salvation all day long, thought I know not its measure. I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD.”
Psalm 71:15-16 (NIV)

We speak of His acts, His salvation, His righteousness in us and through us and others, but as the verse speaks, we could not possibly know the full measure of any of them.

It’s one thing to tell people who God is and quite another to show them. Ephesians 1:18-20 gives us a perfect example: “I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called—His holy people who are His rich and glorious inheritance. I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who belive Him. This is the same might power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.” (NLT)

Does the fact that you know Him give you confident hope? Do you understand the incredible greatness of His power? Ask Him to help you know Him better. Beg Him. Carve some time out for your True Love, the only One who can ‘fill the emptiness, replace the bitterness and empower the weakness that lies within your heart, soul, mind and body.

Take the knowledge of Him with you today, showing Him and telling of Him as you walk, sing, and yes, even do some mountain climbing. Allow Him to flood you with His light, His hope and His power—spreading it to others along the way. Maybe they’ll even start to sing His tune along with you.


• Go Tell Aunt Rhodie author unknown. Copyright unknown.