In today's gospel, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up a high mountain. There Jesus is transfigured right before their eyes. In spectucular fashion, God reveals his Son to these three disciples. Can you imagine such an awesome, yet terrifying experience? 

Peter, James, and John, although frightened and confused, must have been on an intense spiritual high. Jesus specifically chooses them to accompany him on this trek. Then they experience Jesus transfigured with two great ancestral figures and hear the voice of God telling them that Jesus is his Son and to listen to him. The men share an incredible and intense private moment with Jesus. 

Sometimes we too experience intense spiritual highs. Maybe the high comes from a retreat, a day of recollection, a powerful liturgy, a Holy Hour or Festival of Praise, or even a fruitful moment of prayer. To be on cloud nine at the top of the mountain with the Lord is wonderful but eventually you have to hike back down and return to regular life. But are you going to allow the mountain top experience transform you? Renew you? Conform you more closely to Christ?

What we need to remember is that all of the spiritual "mountain" experiences in the world will not make a difference if we don't open ourselves up to being truly changed by them. When we are up on that moutain, God is calling us to himself through his Son. He has us there for a reason. We need to respond to his invitation and follow through with it after the thrill of the spiritual high is over. It's in the simpleness and routineness of every day life where we can make a tremendous impact on building up the Kingdom of God here on earth.

Prayerful Meditation:
(Ignore the hallelujahs in this song to make it more Lenten!)