Easter Devotion (Day 12) - Transfiguring Moments

 

About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.  Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.  As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)
While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.” When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves and did not tell anyone at that time what they had seen.
Luke 9:28-36 

All throughout the Gospel of Luke, Jesus went off to pray. This passage starts out the same way, but then the disciples had a moment of profound clarity, when the identity and the mission of Jesus was revealed to them. They heard God say the words that are meant for every being one earth: "This is my Son, my chosen one. Listen to Him!" 

Such dramatic moments are rare. We may read about them in accounts of mystics and saints, and we may have been blessed enough to experience a profound and life-altering moment or two of clarity ourselves. Through prayer, God can give us glimpses of the divine that we cannot explain. We may have a sudden, deeper understanding of the character of God. God may call us to a mission. God may give us comfort and rest. 

These are genuine moments of intimate communication that are true gifts from God, meant to be cherished and inspire our times when we are not on the mountaintop. It is human nature to want to stay at such a blessed place. But like the disciples, we are meant to take our newfound inspiration and turn to the valleys, where the work of the Lord waits for us. 

Prayer: Lord, strengthen me from the mountaintop to do Your will in the valleys. But please, Lord, let there be a few mountaintop experiences in my life...times that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that You are real, that You are powerful and that You love me. I love you Jesus! In Your name I pray, Amen.



* Devotions taken from The Sanctuary for Lent 2016 by Sue Mink