Have you ever had an experience where you found yourself asking, “How in the world did I get here? Why me?” I don’t think it’s too far of a stretch to assume that most of us, in one way or another, have had such experiences. I find such experiences are a common fixture when in the proverbial valleys as well as on the mountaintops. Failure and success have a way of stirring a sense of awareness and a willingness to evaluate. In the valleys, we want to know what caused us to descend into the depths in order that we might avoid similar experiences in the future. When on the mountaintops, we want to know how we ascended so that we might return and linger a while.
Failure and success have a way of stirring a sense of awareness and a willingness to evaluate.
By the grace of God, I had a mountain top experience last week at, of all places, a church known locally as “The Mount.” I was invited to serve as the keynote speaker at the 156th Annual Meeting of the West Virginia Baptist Convention. While I am not a native of the Mountain State, I did spend a great deal of my formative years in early adulthood in West Virginia and the WVBC played some very special and crucial roles in developing me into the person and pastor I am today. It was in a WVBC church that I first became a full-time pastor. It was in the WVBC that I went through the process of ordination. It was through the partnership between the WVBC and Palmer Seminary that I pursued and received my doctorate. Not only that, but it was through the Bowen Trust, an organization that assists those seeking ministry related education, that my doctorate was paid for. I owe a great debt of gratitude to the WVBC as they made massive investments in me over the years. I, along with other young leaders, had dreamed of one day standing on the stage at the Annual Meeting and speaking to such a distinguished body of pastors and leaders. And, there I was, almost twenty years later, standing on the stage, sharing my thoughts, and living the dream. In that moment, I couldn’t help but ask the questions above, “How in the world did I get here? Why me?”
I’ve found myself asking that question more and more often recently, particularly in regards to opportunities for leadership that are offered. I know who I am, and I know from where I have come. Under the veneer of graduate degrees and what others perceive as positions of authority and influence there still exists a kid from the trailer park that still feels like an unqualified outsider. Thus the questions, how and why has God chosen to afford me the opportunities that He has?
In my experience, a willingness to say “yes” to opportunities to serve in the valleys helps pave the path that often leads us to the mountaintops.
While I would love to pin it all on a combination of natural talent and hard work, I think the answer is much more simple and humble than that. I think the opportunities that come our way often have less to do with our talent and abilities and more to do with a willingness to say “yes” and serve when and as needed. Sure, I have understanding and expertise that was beneficial to the WVBC network of churches. But, how did I get the understanding and expertise that made me useful in this new way? I said “yes” to other less glamorous and more arduous opportunities in the past. In my experience, a willingness to say “yes” to opportunities to serve in the valleys helps pave the path that often leads us to the mountaintops.
When I think of mountaintop experiences, I often think of the transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1-13). Jesus invites Peter, James, and John to take a walk up the mountain with Him. These three formed what we often call Jesus’s inner circle, but why them? Other than Peter possibly being older (though not necessarily more mature), there aren’t any obvious reasons why they would be chosen for this honor. They were simple fishermen from backwater Israel. Yet, there they were standing on a mountaintop, experiencing the honor of seeing Jesus in all of His glory and grace. How did they find themselves in such an amazing position? The answer is quite simple really, Jesus invited them to follow where He led and they humbly accepted His offer. The offer Jesus made would lead them through the most arduous of valleys, but also to the most monumental of mountaintops. And it all hinged on their willingness to faithfully and humbly follow where Christ would lead and to allow Him to do in and through them what only He, God made flesh, could do.
The eventuality of standing on the mountaintop is often predicated upon our willingness to humbly and faithfully say “yes” to lesser opportunities, to serve when we can and how we can in a given moment.
I believe that God has a plan for each of our lives. I believe that purpose and meaning can be found in both the valleys and the mountaintops we experience. And, I believe that God intentionally leads us to and through both and also allows us to play a role in determining which directions we go at times. The good news of the gospel is that our success or failure has less to do with our inherent abilities or natural talent. The eventuality of standing on the mountaintop is often predicated upon our willingness to humbly and faithfully say “yes” to lesser opportunities, to serve when we can and how we can in a given moment. Jesus Himself noted that greatness comes through service. How and why did we get here? The answer often starts with a simple willingness to humbly serve when the opportunity arises.
