God of the Mountain and the Valley

 

Do you remember the fuller brush man? As a child, I remember this door-to-door salesman that sold brushes and other cleaning products. I thought that the name Fuller had to do with the fact that the company sold cleaning products.  (Actually the company name was from the Founder, Albert Fuller.)  Fuller is an occupation—or at least used to be. The person who was a fuller was responsible for cleaning and bleaching fabrics. A Fuller cleansed cloth of oils, dirt and other impurities. I share this with you because in the translation which I just read, the word fuller isn’t translated. In verse three we read about Jesus’ appearance, “his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them.” The Greek actually says, “such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.” Even those who were responsible for bleaching cloth couldn’t have made it as dazzling white as what Jesus robes looked.

         Here on this mountain top, with just the three special disciples, Peter, James and John, Jesus’ appearance makes clear who he is—He is divine. If his appearance weren’t enough, there are Elijah and Moses with him. These two had seen God face to face. Moses was one of the most revered of Old Testament figures and Elijah who was taken up into heaven without dying. Here Jesus stands with these two and it is clear WHO Jesus is—he is the divine one.

         Now, whatever we think about how this took place, clearly the disciples—as typified always by Peter—are not sure what to make of it. We are told that Peter did not know what to say, because they were so terrified. Now, this fearfulness wasn’t just ‘afraid of the dark.’ This was flat out terror like from watching a horror movie.

Most of us when that terrified are struck silent—we can’t think of the words to say. But, not Peter. Now, I believe a good rule of thumb, if you don’t know what to say, don’t say anything! But that is not Peter. Peter is never one to waste an opportunity to say something inappropriate. What Peter says next as NOT the right thing at this time. Peter wants to build dwelling places—for all the heavenly figures here. But, then the voice comes from the sky, “This is my Son, The Beloved. Listen to him.” In my mind, I hear God saying, “Peter, you don’t know what you are talking about. Please, just listen to Jesus!” And the next thing Jesus said to the disciples was to keep this experience to themselves until after he had risen from the dead.

         When I look at this story as a whole, there are a couple of messages that I take away from it. The first is that when we experience Jesus’s divine presence, we can be so overcome by it, that we fail to really listen to what Jesus is saying. We’d rather build a memorial – a dwelling place and just gaze on the spectacle of Jesus rather than live out the words that Jesus has said. And the other message is probably the more important to me right now: the Jesus who stands on the Mountain in dazzling white robes, is the same Jesus that walks down into the valley with us.

         Our temptation, like Peter’s is to believe that we are only close to God when we are on the mountain top. And so we have to try to build dwelling places where that divine God can stay. If you have seen pictures from the Holy Land, or traveled there yourself, you know that there are elaborate, beautiful structures that have been built in the places where Jesus was. The church of the Nativity is built where Jesus was thought to have been born. The church ofthe Holy Sepulchre is built on the spot where Jesus was thought to have been crucified and then buried. When we so enshrine Jesus in a sanctuary, we may be so overcome with Jesus’ appearance, that all we do is gaze at the portrait of Jesus that we have made. We no longer LISTEN to him. We can be so concerned to prove that Jesus is divine that we don’t live into who Jesus has called US to be.

     I would venture to say, that the vast majority of Christians have not had the kind of experience that Peter, James and John did. We have not seen Jesus standing before us in dazzling white robes. If that is what it takes to believe that Jesus is divine than we are all lost. Yet, it is often more in silence, and not spectacle that Jesus reveals himself to us. This knowledge of Jesus as the Divine, the Beloved of God, is something that comes to us when we most need it. The Jesus who stood in dazzling white robes didn’t come down the mountain looking like that. Jesus came as one of the common people. Jesus lived among those who were most forgotten in his time. Jesus wasn’t just the God of the Mountain, he was the loving savior in the valley.

      In my own spiritual life, there have been moments, that I might call spiritual mountain top experiences. But, those have been far fewer than the valleys that I have traversed. My valley experiences far outnumber the mountain top ones. Most of us live our lives in the valley. Yet, we really want to live on the Mountain, don’t we? Recently, I read about a young woman’s experience climbing a mountain. She was prepared for it. She had trained for it. She had dreamed of doing it. But, ultimately, the conditions were too difficult and she had to abandon her climb. That made me think about how few mountains I have climbed. Getting to the top of a mountain is not easy and it does take training and practice.

      In our spiritual lives, this is probably true as well. We have to practice our faith—spend time in bible study, in meditation and in prayer, in listening to God, in worship. When we practice our faith, we are draw into those mountain top experiences. However, most of us don’t live on the mountain. Our day to day living is mostly spent in the valley. For most us, the valley is where we live. And that is where I experience Jesus the most.

      Sometimes, we think of the valley as a dark and sad place. We think of the words from Ps 23 which says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.” The valley isn’t just about suffering and death. The valley just happens to be where most of us live.  Now there are deeper valleys at time, where we feel that we have fallen into a pit. At those times, we might feel abandoned by God. We might find ourselves struggling to get out of that place. And in those times, it is not very often that the dazzling Christ that stands before us. Rather, it is then that we can listen again in silence for the whisper of Jesus telling us of God’s love. It is the Jesus on the mountain, who walks with us in the valley. Whether you are finding yourself on a mountain top, or in a valley, I invite you to listen more closely for Jesus.

     We are about to begin the season of Lent, this is a time of spiritual listening and practice. May you find a way to truly honor the 40 days with a practice that brings you close to Jesus by listening for his voice.

     I want to close with some of the words from a contemporary Christian song—you may have heard it. God of the hills and the valleys.

I've walked among the shadows
You wiped my tears away
And I've felt the pain of heartbreak
And I've seen the brighter days
And I've prayed prayers to heaven from my lowest place
And I have held the blessings
God, you give and take away

No matter what I have, Your grace is enough
No matter where I am, I'm standing in Your love

On the mountains, I will bow my life
To the one who set me there
In the valley, I will lift my eyes to the one who sees me there
When I'm standing on the mountain aft, didn't get there on my own
When I'm walking through the valley end, no I am not alone!
You're God of the hills and valleys!
Hills and Valleys!
God of the hills and valleys
And I am not alone!

 

YOU ARE NOT ALONE!

Let us pray:  Loving and Merciful God, who does not leave us alone, help us to feel your presence whether we are on the mountain, or in the valley.  Thank you for the mountain top experiences when we feel your Holy Spirit and see you before us so early. May they nourish our spirits in such a way, that we are empowered to walk through every valley. Lord, help us to remember that you are the same God, whether we are in moments when we feel close to you, or at the times when we feel far removed. Draw us closer to you each day. help us to truly feel your presence in the darkest days.

         Lord, we lift before you all those who are experiencing times of hardship and stress. We pray for those who are sick and suffering today whether it is in body, mind or spirit. May they know your healing touch restoring them to health and wholeness. We especially pray for those who are grieving may they find comfort in your spirit. Loving God, we know that you know the concerns which we each carry in our hearts. Help us to lay these before you that you might be at work in our lives. We ask this in Christ’s name and pray as he taught us saying

Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this Day our daily bread.  And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.