I went to a conference not long ago. While there, I got some fantastic ideas. I was inspired by the passion of the speakers. I was excited by the sessions I attended. I vowed I would return home and implement what I learned in a way that would revolutionize my work and my relationships. I was sure I would be a more effective chaplain, teacher, coach, father, husband and friend. Unfortunately, something happened that threw a monkey wrench into my plans; the conference ended. I had to come back home, and once I got back to my “real life”, the goals I’d set at the conference all seemed so far away and hard to achieve.
Maybe you too have been to a conference or listened to a podcast, heard a sermon or read a book that led you to believe that you would be changed forever. But then you experienced what I experienced; the conference ended, the podcast concluded, the preacher stopped preaching, you finished the book. After that it was business as usual; all the hopes of “a new you” came crashing back to earth.
In this week’s passage Jesus went to a mountaintop conference with 3 of his disciples. Once there they had an awe-inspiring encounter with God (typically referred to as the Transfiguration). “Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain… And he was transfigured before them and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said, Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ Matthew 17
When I read this, it strikes me that Peter was so inspired by the experience that he wanted to capture and preserve the moment. He offered to build dwellings so they could take up residence on that mountain, perhaps even live there forever. The only problem is that mountaintop experiences aren’t meant to last forever. If only Peter could’ve built those dwellings, perhaps they could’ve held onto that spiritual high. If only I could’ve lived at that conference, I’m sure I could’ve achieved my goal to be a better version of myself. But the conference ended. It always does. And it’s then that we have to come down the mountain and get on with our lives.
One of the great challenges we all face is to live inspired lives after the moment of inspiration is over; to take our mountaintop experience back down into the valley. Immediately after the transfiguration, the disciples came down the mountain and resumed their efforts to live as they were called to live when they were on that mountain. The good news for us is that each of them helped to transform the world precisely because they didn’t stay on that mountaintop.
As we endeavor to live out our faith at the base of the mountain, I invite you to join me as together we strive to live out the sermons we’ve heard, the prayers we’ve prayed, the conferences we’ve attended, the podcasts we’ve listened to, the resolutions we’ve made. The good news is that like Peter, James and John, who came down the mountain together, there’s strength in numbers. Let’s do this together. May we take comfort in knowing that life and faith aren’t meant to be lived on mountaintops, they’re meant to be lived right where we are. This week may we work together to implement the goals we’ve set on the mountains we’ve climbed.
