Transfigured

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, ‘Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!’ Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what this rising from the dead could mean. Then they asked him, ‘Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ He said to them, ‘Elijah is indeed coming first to restore all things. How then is it written about the Son of Man, that he is to go through many sufferings and be treated with contempt? But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, as it is written about him.’ Mark 9:2-13

Life is constantly changing, and just when we think we have figured things out, it changes again. We rarely see completely, we rarely know the truth in front of us, and we also don't know people as God knows them. The three disciples who accompanied Jesus to the mountain top thought they knew him and what was going on. Like us, they could not fathom eternity, they could not imagine Jesus' true self, and like us, they were overwhelmed by what they were experiencing. We too tremble at times, are afraid and don't know what to do. We are invited to see God's glory around us and to put love into practice despite the very real challenges of everyday living.

Loving Creator, author of all wonders

you painted the sky with glorious colors

you put beauty into every child's face

and send rain and snow to cleanse our world.

 

We get caught up in life's small dramas

we can't look up because of our pain

we forget your majesty and wonder here

and try to build walls to protect us.

Lift us up from and small disasters

and help us see from the mountain tops

your love radiating all the world round

and your arms embracing everyone here. Amen.