It is God who arms me with strength, and makes my way perfect.
He makes my feet like the feet of deer, and sets me on my high places (Psalm 18:32, 33).
The Bible talks about various important events that took place on mountain tops. The Lord chose the mountains to reveal Himself in a special way. Moreover. He promises to convey strength and lightness to the hiker’s feet so he can climb high places and remain strong.
For example, on Mount Sinai, God chose to show His presence through thunder, lighting, clouds, smoke like that of furnace, and a voice of thunder. Moses stayed in that holy atmosphere for forty days and forty nights. «This is where God gave to Moses the Tablets of the Law, written with His own finger. Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel, along with Moses, saw God (Exod. 24) on the Mount.
On Mount Carmel, God manifested Himself in an extraordinary manner, sending fire from heaven to burn the sacrifice, the altar, the dirt and even the water from the surrounding trench, while the prayers and abominable rites of the prophets of Baal had absolutely no effect. It was also there that Elijah asked for the long-awaited rain after a long period of dought and God answered Him (l Kings 18).
Jesus showed His divinity to Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. On the summit, His face shone like the sun and Moses and Elijah appeared to them. God Himself spoke and validated the identity and authority of Jesus (Matt, 17).
The Bibles speaks of other mountains where great things happened: Ararat, Calvary, Zion, Olives, etc. To reach the peak, effort must be made; each step is tough and even painful; it requires a certain degree of physical preparation and also a mental state given by the Lord—a skill comparable to the lightness of the deer. At the top, we experience indescribable feelings. Resilience only emerges as a result of a certain degree of pain. The difficult experiences, the barriers and the life limitations may be the only way to achieve resilience and overcome the crisis while getting even stronger.
Let us remember that after crowning moments, we must return to the valley. Peter, James and John wanted to stay on the mountain to bask in the greatness of the divine presence, but they had to come down. Likewise, we must say «goodbye» to crowning moments again and again because we have to keep working in the valley. However, this «goodbye» will no longer be needed when Jesus returns. He will receive the redeemed in the air in order to begin the glorious climb toward the heavenly dwelling where we will eternally be with Jesus (l Thess. 4:17).