Mountains

I came across this devotional that I wrote several years ago. It really spoke to me today so I decided to add it to my blog.  It's always amazing how God is at work in my heart teaching, preparing and guiding me long before I actually need the very thing he's teaching.


After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. Matthew 17:1-2

When I read this passage, the words that caught my eye were “high mountain”. The three disciples followed Jesus “up a high mountain”. How high? How rugged? How long did it take for them to hike to the top? How strenuous was the hike? For the first time I focused on what was going on before the transfiguration.

How many times have we prayed, “Lord move this mountain”? We’re faced with an uphill struggle in life – something that feels insurmountable – and our response is to avoid it, go around it, or simply have it “disappear”. Perhaps the mountain is part of the journey – part of the lesson God is teaching us. Unless we follow Jesus up that mountain we won’t see his glory.

As Christians, we talk about wonderful “mountain-top experiences”: times of great worship, fellowship, or special times of celebration. It’s as if we expect to be supernaturally transported to the top of that mountain. And sometimes that’s true. We attend a great conference, concert or event and bask in the spiritual “high”. But other times, Jesus invites us to follow him up a hard path – a long, difficult path. But, oh, the view at the top! The disciples with Jesus that day heard the voice of the Father, saw Moses and Elijah, and saw Jesus in his transfigured glory. That would have been worth whatever it took to get to the top of that mountain!

It could be that the next mountain in your way was put there by God. He may be inviting you to follow him and see his glory. The passage says that Jesus led the disciples; he will lead us as well. We won’t get lost if we keep our eyes on him. If we stumble on our climb, he’s there to catch us and put us back on our feet. He knows when the climb is getting too strenuous and when we need to rest. And, best of all, he knows the view at the top of the mountain and wants to share it with us.