Optimist Roundtable

By Martha Sykes

Many of us have had those times when we felt like we were on top of the world, really happy, confident that we knew all the answers, and could solve any problem that came up.

Or maybe we felt really close to God and really in tune with God‘s plan for us. Probably, in those moments, we were excited and alive, and everything seemed new.

That moment might have come at an exciting event in life like a baptism, a graduation, a wedding, or it could’ve been something really spiritual, like a special service or maybe a retreat. Back in June of this year, I had the opportunity to attend an ordination for a very special friend and it became one of the most spiritual things I have ever attended. This was one of those times that I felt close to God to be a witness to such a beautiful ceremony. It was a time when we all could feel the Holy Spirit in our presence! We call these mountaintop experiences and when someone has one, it is a moment that we want to last. We want to hang onto that moment for as long as we can.

In the late 1980s, my family took a trip to New Hampshire and while we were there, we took a trip up Mount Washington which is over 6,000 feet high. They had vans that took people and tours to the top of the mountain, but my husband, with all of his adventurous nature, decided we would drive up the long road to the top. It was a breathtaking experience as we reached the top and then a drop in the temperature! At the bottom before you go up, they tell you what the temp is at the top. It was a summer day, so it was pretty warm at the bottom but at the top it was like a very windy 30°! It was like a different world at the top of this mountain peak. That was a different sort of mountaintop experience, but it was one we will always remember.

In the Scriptures, we can read a lot about how Jesus went to the mountains many times to be alone or take His disciples to teach them something, or even to teach crowds of people.

One of my favorite Bible verses is the one that says, “I lift my eyes to the hills, where does my help come?”

Do you ever have mountaintop experiences? Do you ever look to the mountains that surround us and realize what God has given us here where we live? Very soon our mountains will be turning colors and we will look in awe at creation changing all around us!!

Maybe we can explain what a holy moment is or what an encounter with God is, but I believe they can happen. If they happen to you, meditate on them, delight in them, and use them as a source of strength.