When you hit a low do you feel sorry for yourself and complain bitterly, or do you seek to pull yourself back up and learn from it. When you are on a high do you make the most of the moment, working hard and feeling grateful, or do you sit back and become complacent? How you answer these questions is an important indicator of how you are likely to shape your future. Obviously a more positive attitude is going to shape a more fruitful future.
Today we find Peter James and John in low spirits. Discipleship is proving to be more difficult than they had imagined and understandably they were losing the enthusiasm and drive that had shown previously. Jesus recognises that it is time to treat his disciples to a motivational vision, the vision that we now refer to as the ‘Transfiguration’. The glimpse of heaven’s glory must surely have stayed with Peter James and John for the rest of their days. But how does that help us? There’s no doubt that some people are treated to spiritually motivating moments, but for most of us life seems to be just one long round of paying the bills. Is it any wonder we lose the bright-eyed vision of our youth. Or could it be that God is sending us little words of encouragement all the time and we simply don’t remember them?
Peter lends a little human perspective to the story of the Transfiguration. He proposes erecting three tents in which to keep hold of the vision. It might sound trite, but keeping hold of a vision is key to staying motivated. Some people keep letters of encouragement and cards of thanks and congratulations to remind themselves of a time when they were doing a particularly good job. Other people adorn their desks at work with photographs of their children to remind themselves of why they are working, or cover their walls with certificates to keep in mind their original ambition. Others simply keep imagining how things will be once they have achieved their goals.
Jesus teaches us that we can’t always control what’s happening around us, but we can change our thinking. If we adopt a ‘can do’ attitude we will make much better choices for shaping the future.
