Photo ©2025 by Maylan Schurch
Sabbath and Sunday, December 13 and 14, 2025
According to the time stamp on the above photo, it was almost exactly this Friday evening’s sunset when I snapped this shot. I’d just walked out of our cul-de-sac when I noticed this display. On the left is a sturdy aluminum ladder, and to its right is an ethereal “stairway to the stars.”
From what I can tell, the householder ascended the aluminum ladder to attach the star and its lighted ladder to the corner of an eave. A few minutes later, when I returned from my walk, the solid ladder was gone.
But those two ladders made me ponder a bit. Couldn’t they be a parable for modern life? On the one hand you have a dependable support which will safely elevate you to a height of five or six additional feet off the earth, but no farther. On the other hand, you have a way to a happy eternity, but which you can’t climb with fists and feet, but which beckons you home.
I think a mistake a lot of people – including some Bible folks – make is that human ladders can get you anywhere you want. In Genesis 11, a huge proportion of humanity, remembering Noah’s worldwide flood, decided to build a tower which they hoped would reach to heaven. God scrambled their languages and their plans, since it was clear that they refused to turn to Him for safety.
Any “ladders” in your life you’ve been depending on for more than they’re able to provide? Money? Fame? Power? The true secret of heart-deep security is acquaintance with, and dependence on, the One whom Jesus called “Father.”
To review some of what Scripture says about God, click the link just below.
https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/topics/god