Let’s be honest. Things
are going good for you, aren’t they? Right
now you are on top of your game, sitting on the mountain peak. Everything is going your way. Life couldn’t get any better, right? I really hope that is where you are right
now, but honestly not all of us can say that.
For me, I think I am emerging from the valley headed for that place, but
I still have a long road in front of me.
I am trying to remember when I was last on the mountain top –
I mean a REAL mountain top. Sure there
have been ups and downs here and there. There have been reasonably good times
(mini-mountain tops you might say), but some of the valleys have been pretty
dark. The last time I can really, really
say I was way up there… well, it’s been a while now. For a short while, it was dark enough that I
couldn’t even see what was right in front of me. It was truly a Valley of the Shadow of Death. I thought I would never emerge from that
place, but God was faithful as he always is and brought me through to the other
side. The words of the Psalmist are so true: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death (or the valley of deep darkness) I will fear no evil for you are with me" (ESV). Since emerging from that dark place there have been
foothills, mini-peaks, and small valleys in my life; but nothing like the Valley of the Shadow
of Death…but also nothing like the absolute pinnacle of the mountain either. I remember...
It’s so nice on the mountain top. The view is spectacular. The air is clean. You just want to sit back and bask in the
majesty of it all. Too bad you can’t
stay there. Sure, all of us want to
build our house on Mount Olympus and glory in our accomplishments, but is that
truly realistic? Imagine what it would
be like to stay on the mountain top forever.
The top of the mountain is a very lonely place. The truth is, most people are in the valley
most of the time. Plus, after a while, that
awesome, majestic view just becomes a bunch of rocks and snow peaking through
the tops of the clouds. Where is the green? Where is the warmth? There are no
flowers and no trees and probably no other life of any kind. And to put it all in perspective, it gets
pretty cold on top of the mountain. The mountain top is a GREAT place to visit, but a pretty lousy place to live.
Let’s face it. You
can’t stay here. After all, why did you
climb the mountain in the first place? Were
you looking for a sense of accomplishment?
Mission Accomplished: time to move on.
Were you trying to find out what was on the other side? Well, you may have reached the pinnacle, but
you still don’t know what is on the other side if you stay here. If you take a good look around, you will
probably notice as well that this mountain top is not the end of the
world. There are other peaks out there
waiting for you to find and discover them. The only way for you to do that
is to leave this place and begin a new journey.
So here is what I say.
Enjoy the moment. Spend a little
time in repose. And while you are there,
be sure to give out a really good shout (there is nothing like shouting from the
mountain top, right?). However, don’t stay there long. YOU MUST MOVE ON. Here’s the rub, though. To leave, there’s only one way you can go. You have to go back down into the valley, and
there’s only two ways you can get there.
You can climb down or you can fall down.
Personally, climbing down seems much less painful than falling down, but
either way you are going to end up back at the bottom. Hopefully, it will not be a Valley of the
Shadow of Death. Fortunately, not every
valley is that dark and dangerous. Instead,
let’s hope it will be a green, lush valley teeming with life and beauty. Unfortunately, you won’t know until you get
there. Don’t let the fear of the unknown
stop you.
Right now I really believe I am climbing out of the valley
towards another peak. I’ve been in the
valley a very long time. Some of the
time it has been very dark and dangerous, but honestly there have been parts of
this valley that were beautiful and lush and green. I can honestly say I am thankful for
both.
As for the lush and green part of my valley, I could have
stayed there for quite a while with only minimal complaints. However, just like
you can’t stay on the mountain top, you can’t stay in the valley either – even if
it is a green valley. You have to keep
moving and that means starting the slow, difficult climb up the next mountain. I am facing a pretty big mountain in my life
right now, but I know it is time to move on and thus it is a mountain that
needs to be climbed. I know there will
be an awesome peak at the top. It will be hard work getting there, but the memories of the
last mountain peak will keep me going. I cannot even fathom the joy that is waiting at the pinnacle. Plus, I am really curious what’s on the other side… onward and upward! (and then back down again)
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