Perspective On The MountaintopSample

Dangers On The Mountain

We can spend a lot our time seeking mountain top experiences. The prevailing view is that life is about seeking out experiences that exhilarate us, that bring us exuberant joy.

But there are dangers on the mountain. For one, despite conventional wisdom, these types of experiences are only temporary. They are one of the terrains of life we shuffle through. No matter what we do, we cannot find a “life forever” on the mountaintops. Adventure junkies chase more and more adrenaline, pushing the edge a little more every time. The way the world works, mountaintops are unavoidably rare and temporary joys. Believing we can do all of life there is inaccurate and unhealthy.

The danger of the mountain is that we believe life should always be this way. That we must feel this exuberance, this high, in order to be ok. We sink into apathy or delusion to protect the unrealistic hope that all things will feel great all the time.

But reality is that life is full of seasons. There are high seasons, low seasons. We have happy seasons and painful seasons. Yes, being in the mountaintop is exciting but we must remember that it’s a season. We eventually get down from the mountain. It’s a season, and seasons have a beginning and an end. Through every season, God’s love will sustain us. In the valley, on the plains, or on the mountaintop, whichever journey or season it is, it’s God’s love that sustains. 

There’s a beautiful verse that Paul wrote in one of his letters that says, “…thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you to live.” I once heard someone say that gratitude is the highway to joy. Being thankful changes the way we see life. It changes our perspective. We can only live this verse by having a godly perspective. By knowing that God can give us joy in the mountaintops but in the valleys and on the plains as well. 

The truth is that we can be ok throughout any of the terrains of life. God, not our circumstances, will sustain us. We do not achieve peace by overwhelming ourselves with exhilaration. We find peace by accepting and understanding the value of all circumstances, in any situation.

The mountaintop is not the chief end of life. It is just like every other kind of circumstance - a part of the journey. A chance to be thankful. A chance to learn. A chance to perceive a fuller truth of the unique journey of life. 

Please look for the 6th part of the plan, Yellow Balloons. We all go through different seasons. Some are on the mountaintop, most in the plains and even in the valley. This series encourages us to choose a truer and godly perspective during any season of our lives.

Listen to “Ready to Be Myself” by David Dunn

To get more from this plan, read the book Yellow Balloons by Tim Dunn. You can download it from http://www.yellowballoons.net/ in the Downloads area using the passcode: Grace