June 24, 2026

Elizabeth and I have returned from our mountaintop vacation in Montana restored and rested. It was a delightful time with family under the Big Sky! I am grateful that the homestead still stands and that the weather was conducive to keeping the garden well-watered while we were away.

Spending six days on a mountaintop led me to consider mountaintop experiences in my life. In the biblical narrative, mountaintop experiences are temporary. They are meant to inspire, reveal God’s nature, and equip us for the ordinary – and often difficult – realities of life in the valleys below. Examples include Moses on Mt. Sinai, Jesus’ transfiguration on a mountaintop, Elijah on Mt. Carmel, Abraham and Isaac on Mt. Moriah, and Jesus on the Mount of Olives.

It would be nice if every moment could be a mountaintop experience where divine encounter and transcendence from our mundane existence were the norm. Last I checked, though, there are no mountains in Muncie. So, rather than our bodily selves being elevated, perhaps it is our perspective that needs a lift into the aerie realms of the divine. Vacation from the routine certainly helps with this shift.

And now, as “they” say, “Back to the grind!” I do so joyfully…

Rev. Eric