The Transfiguration – Luke 9:28-36
REFLECTION – LIVING THE TRANSFIGURATION
It happened 14 years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday.
I arrived at Tabor Ashram, exhausted and soul-weary, carrying three desperate fears:
- Living alone with my toddler, I was afraid to sleep at night.
- My husband was sailing through heavily pirated waters, with reports of crews being taken hostage.
- Someone close to me was pregnant and the prognosis for her baby-in-the-womb was grim.
Knowing I was collapsing under the weight of these fears, my mother-in-law had suggested we attend the first-Friday service at Tabor. So there we were, in a hall filled with praising voices.
As the rosary began, everything around me suddenly faded and went white. And inside that packed hall, three exquisite scenes unfolded before my eyes:
- Jesus, sitting at my door in the night. Staff in hand, watching like a shepherd. His eyes met mine: “Why are you afraid? I’m here.”
- My husband — standing on the deck of his ship. Jesus behind him, hand on his shoulder.
- The woman I was praying for, seated by a mountain, and Jesus reaching down to touch her womb.
That was it. The vision vanished.
Coming down the mountain
There was no blazing light or thunder that day, but like Peter, James, and John, who I had just had my mountaintop experience. Like them, I was in awe.
I wish I could say that from that moment on, I have been full of unshakeable faith. But that wouldn’t be true. You see, like the three apostles, I had to come down the mountain after getting a taste of God’s presence.
Life off the mountain can get messy and uncertain. And I haven’t always walked in the knowledge that He’s got me covered. I’ve spent worry-filled hours over my children, over health concerns, relationships, misunderstandings, and even exams!
Each time, I’ve had to choose faith. Often, with every ounce of strength I’ve had. There’ve been times I’ve walked around my house, arms cutting through the air in defiance, saying, “I cut you down fear, worry, and doubt! I don’t believe you!”
But then, every time I return to that moment in Tabor and to the countless big and small things He has done for me, doubt slowly becomes less of an adversary.
What changed after that experience?
Not the world around or its problems. But my understanding. Of Him. I had tasted His nearness and His tender provision. And so each time I was afraid and anxious, I brought this to mind.
Living the Transfiguration
Mountaintop moments aren’t always visions or bursts of thunder. Sometimes they come quietly — in a line of scripture that pierces the heart, in the sincere “Sorry” of a child who has given you sleepless nights, in the resolution of an impossible situation at work.
They are those flashes of clarity when you just know that God is near and He’s got you.
Much as we’d like to pitch our tents and stay on those wondrous mountaintops, we aren’t meant to do that. (Not yet, at least.) Like the three apostles, we too must come down. To live in the plains and valleys of everyday life — in the early morning school drops, doctor’s waiting rooms, office cubicles, and the daily grind.
But that’s not the end of the story.
It reminds us not to lose our sense of wonder and our trust in His power, even when we’re in the midst of the humble and the mundane.
So when we worry – about our children, our health, our jobs – let’s not spiral into what-ifs. Or turn to Google for instant answers. Instead, let’s turn to His Word, recall His faithfulness, and claim His promises.
If at first, fear seems to overcome your faith, don’t lose hope. Whatever the burden, remember all the times He has come through for you, and with quiet trust, cast your cares upon Him yet again.
Because He’s not just Lord of the mountain, but of the valleys and plains too.
In faith,
