Preparing for the mountain

This is the week for mountain climbing.

As I read  the story of Transfiguration, I envision Jesus, James, Peter and John walking up the winding path to the top of the mountain.  I enter the story, and I can almost feel my thighs and calves beginning to burn.

I can't help but think of the hike last summer when I made it as far as I could above the treeline on one of the many peaks in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

We may not have reached the summit...but we were high enough that as we walked there were no trees.  Nothing appeared in peripheral vision other than panoramic vistas.  (That was high enough for me!)

As I stood on the rocky trail I was grateful for the support of my hiking stick (I will take two next time!)  But I can't begin to imagine the terror if I had suddenly been overshadowed by a thick cloud that obscured all vision.  When you are up that high you rely upon vision and perspective to maintain balance.  If suddenly you can't see you have no choice but to get closer to the ground (down on your knees if necessary) and wait for the cloud to pass.

Look at the scripture again.  Even though there were some fantastic things going on with Jesus gleaming brightly and the appearance of Moses and Elijah, the boys were able to maintain their ability to come up with a plan.   Knowing that something (and somebody) remarkable was in their presence, they wanted to DO something in response:  Build a tent and stay there a while.  That was a normal response.  They felt safe, even though they knew they were in the middle of one of those once in a lifetime moments.  They were witnesses of God's majesty, but it seems that they had not yet been transformed by it.

The trek and the sights were a foretaste of God's revelation to them.  The opportunity to witness Jesus' transfiguration and His connection to Moses and Elijah may have been marvelous to them.  But God went all the way by embedding in their souls the sound of His voice!  All of their capacity to fend for themselves was eclipsed by God's voice saying:  "This (Jesus) is my Son, the Beloved.  Listen to Him."

I wonder.... did they hear a voice like a human being?  Or, as in so many other instances, was the message imparted to them by something that would have sounded like thunder to anybody else?  (By the way, if you have ever been high in the mountains during a thunderstorm, you know how terrifying that is!)

They were knocked down with fear.  They were immobilized.  Then they heard Jesus say:  "Get up and do not be afraid."

 He goes back down the mountain with them, and stays with them in the trenches of every day life.    He teaches them, challenges them, loves them, weeps for them, prays for them, and then dies abandoned by them.

James, John and Peter weren't the first human beings to have mountain top experiences.... but unlike Moses or Elijah who went back down their mountains alone, they returned with God in Jesus at their side.  In those moments they were transformed from guys who were chumming around with a charismatic teacher and healer to disciples following the Son of God Almighty.

I often hear folks speak about having a "Mountaintop Experience".  It may be one of life's highest moments, or a profound spiritual experience, or a once in a lifetime event.  Where and with whom have you had such an experience?  What happened when normal, ordinary life returned?  Was it back to the same old, same old?  Or were you so affected by the "high point" that life, quite honestly, just wasn't the same?  How were you re-made or transformed by the experience?

Every year we are blessed with the Transfiguration Story just before we enter into the Lenten Lowlands.  How might you prepare?  Are you ready to climb the mountain?  You are invited to take the trek!