Awake

Luke 9:28-36

About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. ²⁹As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.

³⁰Two men, Moses and Elijah, ³¹appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.

³²Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.

³³As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.)

³⁴While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.

³⁵A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him."

³⁶When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen.

Have you ever been so tired, that you just could not get up and going?

I had a minor version of that feeling this morning. Last night was a late one at the church, as was the night before. This morning came early and sleeping in at all was not an option.

What could make you "fully awake" at such times?

A couple of years ago, at about 2 AM, one of our cats decided to jump in the bathtub, in the bathroom adjacent to our bedroom. He knocked shampoo bottles into the tub, he went crazy trying to get back out, and the whole thing (in my deep, deep sleep), sounded just like a gang of intruders trying to break down our door.

Holly says she had no idea that I know kung fu, or that I'm secretly a ninja, but that I bolted straight out of bed and assumed a Mr. Miagi fighting stance.

Adrenaline flowed, and I was weirdly, fully, awake.

How could this happen to us spiritually?

If you haven't noticed, it's "glowing face" week in the lectionary, as we talk about the transfiguration.

No, I don't really know the details of what the face-glowing could really mean.

But I do know it gets attention. I know it's a sign of an incredible closeness with the power of God. I know that when Peter and the other disciples experienced this moment, they wanted to stay there.

Until the "cloud" came. The cloud, and the voice of God himself. And then the silence.

I don't think they said much to each other, and certainly not to Jesus, as they walked back down that hill.

They were awestruck, fully awake.

Do we dare to want a taste of that kind of power in our own lives?

I think we do. Let's dare to ask God for experiences of his presence that will leave us wide awake, and forever changed.

Grace & Peace,

Adam

And, the response to the inclusion of a song yesterday was so good, let's give it another go. Don't know if you've heard this 80's pop song used on Christian radio, but if you think about the lyrics in terms of Christianity and especially this transfiguration story, it's pretty good...listen to references to being "awake," and to "light and heat."