The Bridge That Was Already There

In 2018, a group of hikers in the Swiss Alps got caught in a sudden whiteout near the Aletsch Glacier. Visibility dropped to nothing. The trail vanished beneath fresh snow, and the temperature plummeted. For three hours, the group of five stumbled through fog and ice, convinced they were lost beyond rescue. One woman later told reporters she had already started composing goodbye messages in her head.

What they did not know was that a mountain rescue team had been dispatched before they ever called for help. A shepherd in the valley below had seen the storm rolling in and alerted authorities. By the time the hikers realized they were in danger, rescuers were already climbing toward them.

This is the heart of what Paul declares in Romans 5. We did not call out and then wait for God to decide whether we were worth saving. While we were still sinners — still stumbling, still lost in the whiteout of our own making — Christ died for us. The rescue was launched before we knew we needed it. The bridge between us and the Father was built not in response to our goodness, but in spite of our wandering.

And here is what changes everything: because that reconciliation is already accomplished, our suffering is no longer meaningless. Every hardship becomes a trail marker, producing perseverance, then character, then hope — a hope that does not disappoint, because the love of God has already been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. The rescue team was never waiting for us to find our way. They were already on the mountain.