Summit Bound

Psalm 119:75 I know, O LORD, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me (ESV)

    Felt stranded and alone lately? Have you lost heart and become cast down? Wonder why the Lord allows affliction to befall upon his beloved? Have you been heading for the summit only to realize none but you have made it? I have spent most of my growing years on the mountain being that I am an avid snowboarder. In those years I have witnessed some of the most epic storms and yet been graced with some of the most beautiful calms. Days when I could not see my own hand in front of me and days when I could see as far as my eye would let me. There are no rules when it comes to predicting mountain weather, anything goes. One minute the sun can be shining and the next minute you can be caught up in a storm closing in.

    The higher up the mountain you go, the more keen your senses become to the reality of your position. Conditions worsen and the weather is often harsher at higher elevations. The summit is the place that takes on the most grueling weather. Some times for days it does not let up, whereas lower down on the mountain you can find calm from the storm. A true minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ is nothing short of summit bound. He has been called to ascend to heights few others will know. The higher he goes the harder it will be to continue on. He can be assured of finding himself lonely as others turn back for calmer conditions. No doubt this same overwhelming sense of loneliness flooded our Savior in the garden of Gethsemane when He came back from prayer to find His most beloved disciples sleeping on the job (Mark 14:32-42). In that moment He realized His comfort came from the Father alone. Like David, He had learned how to “strengthen himself in the Lord” (1 Samuel 30:6). We should not look to vain things for our strength in the time of need, rather we must learn as Jesus did to cry out “Abba, Father.”

    The view from the summit is also the best. Although many days the visibility is next to none, when the storm does let up there’s no better place to see more clearly then at the summit. This is also true of the Minister. He will encounter storms unknown to most. It is in these storms his senses will also grow stronger then the average man. He will have to stand on the rock even when he has lost all sight of it. If he is going to make it, he must learn to navigate upon the rock by faith and not by the sight of it.

    Now if you have ever spent a season on the mountain you also know there are times of inversion. This means at some point you ascend above the cloud level and gain back all visibility. When lower down the mountain the people are stranded in a white out you can see for miles at the summit. Now the Shepherd can lead his blinded sheep for he has survived the most grueling of whiteouts known to the mountain. When the people have become cast down and have lost all hope of making it out alive; the Minister has vision to get them through. All the while sympathizing and having compassion on their condition.

    I also grew up on a river and have spent many years observing the flow of the water. When summer comes and the snow begins to melt the rivers are rushing with water. Although the water is much to cold to get in, there is an abundance of it. This season is quick to shift; as the snow begins to melt away the water calms down and warms up a little bit. It is now suitable for swimming and freely flowing for the people to enjoy. As a minister it is easy to start off strong and seem untouchable. But the ones who stop half way up the mountain will soon melt off and be no more. This man is not fit for the ministry. You cant sow in preservation and expect to reap in the benefits of sacrifice. To the sorrow of his people his journey will be short-lived.

    The people need a well seasoned Minister, one who has spent time on the summit of the mountain. Who in the late of summer still has enough snow to supply the riverbeds with fresh water. It is these Ministers, who have endured the storm that buried them, and now their storehouses are overflowing for business. They are not stingy in there dividing of the word, but with great diligence they pour out their souls on behalf of the needy. Rather then preserving their flesh they offer themselves as a living sacrifice for their people. It is their duty and privilege to exhaust their lives for Jesus. It is the man who can say with confidence,"I know, O LORD, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me," that is fit for the building up of the saints.