"Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves" Matthew 17:1
A dear [Christian] brother recently described to me the "mountain top" experience he had been having of late. He was overflowing and just had to share it with someone! I confess that with the beautiful, unseasonably warm day, working outside doing a job I love, I was having somewhat of a mountain top experience myself.
It's easy to see why God gives us times like these. Experiencing his love in such a real and powerful way, overflowing with joy to the point of tears, we "see the glory of the coming of the Lord". We are encouraged to "fight the good fight of faith" (1 Timothy 6:12), and to descend into the demon-possessed valley as our Lord did.*
Yet my friend somewhat sardonically ended his communication to me with, "We'll see how long it lasts." He knew by experience that, although the feeling was real and God's gift to him, it wouldn't last forever.
Early on in our Christian walk the "crash" after the mountain top can be quite devastating, especially if we have no spiritual peers to help guide us through. We get depressed and doubt that it ever happened at all, and if we do find ourselves on the mountain top again, we try to hold onto the experience like the disciples did, only to be rebuked by God and everything vanish into the ordinary again (see Matthew 17:1-9; Mark 9:2-9; and Luke 9:28-35).
Afterwards we learn not to "hoard" the experience for ourselves and pass it on to others, but this can come from misguided motives as well. For example, we may want to spread the love to others in order to prolong our exalted feeling! Or, for those of us ingrained with performance-based acceptance, we are driven by a feeling of guilt that we aren't worthy of such an experience and therefore "owe" God something for it.
Well, one part of that last sentence is true: we truly aren't worthy! But I'm realizing more and more that God so wants us to enjoy these times as a gift, and not to driven by guilt to immediately do something in return.God wants us to sit with him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), and literally "marinate" in his presence until we are changed! I recall a conference I was at in Toronto in 2003, the first time I really experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. I went there somewhat reluctantly after being a Christian a couple years (and a very depressed one at this point). The conference was full of joyful music and people laughing and dancing and weeping, and I tried to pretend to get into it, but I was tied up in knots inside, and could barely contain my anger and depression. I was thirty years old and had yet to process any emotions in a meaningful way up to that point (you know, being a man and all). But as I stood in line and was prayed for that night, I crumpled gently to the floor under the power of the Holy Spirit. I felt good and maybe wept a little, but then struggled to get up after my "rational" mind kicked in. However there was a very real, gently, heavy weight pressing on my chest, so I somewhat reluctantly laid back down. As the weight seemed to increase (but not feel bad in any way), I began to feel deep within me sobs heaving, which soon began wrenching my whole body. I could see my life being played back before my eyes, and God was helping me to grieve every injustice that had been done to me in my whole life! I don't know how long I laid there, but when I was finally done, I then began laughing about as hard as I could for about as long! Talk about cathartic! I was completely drained, relaxed, and happy. Needless to say I enjoyed the rest of the conference. I haven't experienced anything quite like it since. **
Early on in our Christian walk the "crash" after the mountain top can be quite devastating, especially if we have no spiritual peers to help guide us through. We get depressed and doubt that it ever happened at all, and if we do find ourselves on the mountain top again, we try to hold onto the experience like the disciples did, only to be rebuked by God and everything vanish into the ordinary again (see Matthew 17:1-9; Mark 9:2-9; and Luke 9:28-35).
Afterwards we learn not to "hoard" the experience for ourselves and pass it on to others, but this can come from misguided motives as well. For example, we may want to spread the love to others in order to prolong our exalted feeling! Or, for those of us ingrained with performance-based acceptance, we are driven by a feeling of guilt that we aren't worthy of such an experience and therefore "owe" God something for it.
Well, one part of that last sentence is true: we truly aren't worthy! But I'm realizing more and more that God so wants us to enjoy these times as a gift, and not to driven by guilt to immediately do something in return.God wants us to sit with him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), and literally "marinate" in his presence until we are changed! I recall a conference I was at in Toronto in 2003, the first time I really experienced the power of the Holy Spirit. I went there somewhat reluctantly after being a Christian a couple years (and a very depressed one at this point). The conference was full of joyful music and people laughing and dancing and weeping, and I tried to pretend to get into it, but I was tied up in knots inside, and could barely contain my anger and depression. I was thirty years old and had yet to process any emotions in a meaningful way up to that point (you know, being a man and all). But as I stood in line and was prayed for that night, I crumpled gently to the floor under the power of the Holy Spirit. I felt good and maybe wept a little, but then struggled to get up after my "rational" mind kicked in. However there was a very real, gently, heavy weight pressing on my chest, so I somewhat reluctantly laid back down. As the weight seemed to increase (but not feel bad in any way), I began to feel deep within me sobs heaving, which soon began wrenching my whole body. I could see my life being played back before my eyes, and God was helping me to grieve every injustice that had been done to me in my whole life! I don't know how long I laid there, but when I was finally done, I then began laughing about as hard as I could for about as long! Talk about cathartic! I was completely drained, relaxed, and happy. Needless to say I enjoyed the rest of the conference. I haven't experienced anything quite like it since. **
The point is, we are often too hasty to bask in and enjoy the Lord's presence, when the reality is the joy of the Lord is our strength! (Nehemiah 8:10) The Lord in his wisdom has ordained these times to refresh our souls (cf. Acts 3:19), and desires that we unashamedly drink from the flowing water and abundant food he provides (cf. Song of Solomon 5:1; Isaiah 55:1)
Yes, the mountain top will not last forever, but the fall need not be precipitous. God has promised to those who have committed their lives to him that they will "walk on the high places" (Habakkuk 3:19). The Hebrew in this passage does not refer to a mountain, but a plateau. As we obey him God will strengthen our spirits in the inner man like steel (Ephesians 3:16), so we can face anything that comes our way and truly can do all things through him who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13).
Yes, the mountain top will not last forever, but the fall need not be precipitous. God has promised to those who have committed their lives to him that they will "walk on the high places" (Habakkuk 3:19). The Hebrew in this passage does not refer to a mountain, but a plateau. As we obey him God will strengthen our spirits in the inner man like steel (Ephesians 3:16), so we can face anything that comes our way and truly can do all things through him who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13).
* cf. Oswald Chambers: "The Place of Exaltation"
** People seeking experiences like these are likely to encounter a counterfeit by the Enemy; however I didn't then and don't now seek such experiences but God himself. Having said that, this and other similar experiences I have had pass the spiritual test as "the real deal".
** People seeking experiences like these are likely to encounter a counterfeit by the Enemy; however I didn't then and don't now seek such experiences but God himself. Having said that, this and other similar experiences I have had pass the spiritual test as "the real deal".
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