Life in places other than the mountaintop.
The FOCs (Followers of Christ), the youth group of the Manor Hill United Methodist Church that I serve, joined other area youth for a hike at Trough Creek State Park.
We ended up in three groups: those who did the mountain at a good pace, those who did the mountain at a slower pace, those who did not do the mountain.
I was part of the middle group. As we made the ascent, some hikers began to ask, “How much further is it?” My first response was, “What goes up must come down” – a disguised way of saying that we weren’t even halfway done! A discussion followed that hinted that the hike down would be more pleasurable. We made it to the top and what wonderful views! The path followed the mountaintop briefly, giving beautiful views of Raystown Lake below.
But soon, the descent began. I caught a brief comment, “I think I liked climbing up the mountain better than going down.”A long time ago, Amy Grant recorded a song entitled “Mountain Top.” It talks about how she’d love to live on a mountaintop, just fellowshipping with the Lord, feeling her spirit soar. The song continues …
But I’ve got to come downFrom the mountain topTo the people in the valley below;They’ll never knowThat they can goTo the mountain of the Lord.
The song goes on to define what true worship is …
…worship is … all that we say and everything that we do;It’s letting God’s Spirit live through you.
It’d be cool to hang out on the mountaintops with God all the time. It’d be nice to always be with and work with like-minded people, who share our beliefs. But God calls us to different places, to different people. God calls us to love people who are not like us. Will we answer the call to be true worshipers, who reflect God in the everyday moments of life?Please take a moment and read Matthew 17.1-13 and John 4.20-24.