. . . Jesus took . . . them up on a high mountain apart by themselves . . . —Mark 9:2
We have all experienced times of exaltation on the mountain, when we have seen things from God’s perspective and have wanted to stay there. But God will never allow us to stay there. The true test of our spiritual life is in exhibiting the power to descend from the mountain. If we only have the power to go up, something is wrong. It is a wonderful thing to be on the mountain with God, but a person only gets there so that he may later go down and lift up the demon-possessed people in the valley (see Mark 9:14-18 ). We are not made for the mountains, for sunrises, or for the other beautiful attractions in life— those are simply intended to be moments of inspiration. We are made for the valley and the ordinary things of life, and that is where we have to prove our stamina and strength. Yet our spiritual selfishness always wants repeated moments on the mountain. We feel that we could talk and live like perfect angels, if we could only stay on the mountaintop. Those times of exaltation are exceptional and they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware to prevent our spiritual selfishness from wanting to make them the only time.
We are inclined to think that everything that happens is to be turned into useful teaching. In actual fact, it is to be turned into something even better than teaching, namely, character. The mountaintop is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something. There is a terrible trap in always asking, "What’s the use of this experience?" We can never measure spiritual matters in that way. The moments on the mountaintop are rare moments, and they are meant for something in God’s purpose.
3 comments:
I really like the point about turning the experiences we face into character. I pray we all are open to improving our character.
cas
Great perspective. I do believe, however, that we are made for ALL of life. We are made for pain and beauty. The perspective that you focus on, cas, is so true...the quote that really grabbed me was following yours:
The mountaintop is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something. There is a terrible trap in always asking, "What’s the use of this experience?" We can never measure spiritual matters in that way. The moments on the mountaintop are rare moments, and they are meant for something in God’s purpose.
May God lead us into a deeper faith that flourishes when there is silence as much as when there is sight.
Blessings,
er
I remember blowing off going to church summer camps because I self-righteously thought that it wasn't the real world. However, it was a place for God to get my attention and to remind me of my purpose in life...However, it's hard not to be drawn to the vacation spots that offer sanctuary and renewal and to want to reside there. Then I'm reminded that true peace and serenity is not the physical place I'm in but the spiritual state I choose to reside in to bring about God's purpose and message through me.
Post a Comment