16th Century Icon
The Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia

Last Sunday of Epiphany
The Transfiguration

Mark 9:2-8 -- 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.

What a way to get ready for Lent... standing on a mountaintop watching Jesus change in Christ- and then back. The moment is beyond our comprehension. Lent can take us into the depths of our souls- places we should not go alone. Lent transports us to the cross for a 40-day contemplation.

So today, the last Sunday before Lent, we come to this mountaintop to be emboldened.

So I come today to be emboldened- not just for Jesus' cross and my re-imagining of that great event of hope- but for the journey I will make starting Wednesday. I will have surgery sometime that day- Ash Wednesday- to correct issues with my lower back. In no way am I likening this to Jesus' journey to Calvary. My pain and so-called "suffering" pales.

But in my human weakness and fear it is bad enough. Jesus has been through worse and was brought through it. So can - and will- I be brought. At times like this, deep theology goes nowhere. Deep theology is of the mind. This is of the heart. And the heart is human and fearful. How powerful is the basic and simple message that Jesus has been here. Jesus knows.

So I am given a vision today from a mountaintop. I'm taken there with Peter, James and John to witness my Lord and Master be transformed. This, I am being told, is for your strengthening through what is to come. No matter what the day or times bring, there is one who is there. As I was typing, words came through iTunes from the album based on the movie, The Apostle. It was the group Sounds of Blackness reminding me that:

Victory is mine,
victory is mine,
victory today is mine.

I told Satan to get thee behind,
victory today is mine.

Verse:
When I rose this morning,
I didn't have no doubt,
I knew that the Lord would bring me out.

I fell on my knees,
said, "Lord help me please"
got up singing and shouting the victory.

Victory is mine,
victory is mine,
victory today is mine.

I told Satan to get thee behind,
victory today is mine.

Again, it is in the everyday of life that this holds true. Fear and uncertainty or awe and wonder can overwhelm. To come face to face with them, like Peter, James and John is to know the presence of God and the closeness of grace. The mountaintops - in an odd mixed metaphor - keep us grounded in God.