While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.
Luke 9:34 (NIV)

I have a friend whose story intersected with mine in college. As happens, our paths on life’s journey took us in different directions. A few years ago, our paths brought us back together. My friend is going through a particularly painful chapter of his personal story. As we have talked over the last few years, my friend regularly mentions one of our college professors. This professor meant a lot to him, and he always expresses how he would love to connect and what an encouragement it would be to him.

Yesterday, that very professor posted a comment on my blog and said that one of my blog posts unexpectedly “popped up” and prompted him to send a “remember me?” comment to the blog post.

Hmmmm.

In yesterday’s post/podcast, I talked about stories. My story. Your story. How my story has intersected with countless other people and their stories. They become part of my story and I become part of theirs whether it is for a moment, a season, a few different seasons, or the whole earthy journey.

I believe that every person’s story, and our respective intersections with each other’s stories, are ultimately about our respective intersections with the Great Story that God is authoring in the grand scheme. I believe they are all connected in ways we can’t humanly fathom.

The further I get in my spiritual journey, the more I recognize that everything is connected.

Today’s chapter marks a definitive shift in Luke’s version of the Jesus Story. We’re less than halfway through, but having given a broad brush summary of Jesus’ first two years of ministry he’s going to shift to the climactic final months. Here’s how the good doctor clues us in:

First, Jesus asks The Twelve who they think He is. Peter says he thinks Jesus is God’s Messiah. Jesus warns them to keep this to themselves and immediately tells them what is going to happen: He will be handed over to the religious institution, be killed, and rise from the dead. (vs 18-27)

A second time Jesus tells The Twelve that He will be “delivered into the hands of men.” (vs 43-45)

Dr. Luke then states that as these events approached Jesus “resolutely set out for Jerusalem” where all these things would take place. (vs 51)

Smack dab in the middle of this setup (vs 28-36) is one of the funkiest episodes of the Story, also referenced by both Matthew and Mark in their versions.

Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up to the top of a mountain. The three amigos start to nod off, and when they wake up Jesus is standing there shining like the sun talking to two others talking to Him. The two others turn out to be Moses and Elijah and they are talking to Jesus about His “departure.” Then a thick cloud appears and the boys are freaking out. The cloud is so thick they can’t see anything and a voice from the cloud says, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen; Listen to Him.”

What most casual readers miss is that this entire episode is rooted in the ancient story of the Exodus (you can read it in Exodus 20), when God delivers the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt and makes a covenant with them, that they will be His people and He will be their God. Everything in the Great Story is connected. If I don’t learn the whole Story, I’ll always miss the connections. Let me break it down:

Moses was the appointed deliverer of the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, just as Jesus is about to be the deliverer of all humanity from slavery to sin. Both episodes happen on mountains, Moses on Mount Sinai, Jesus on an undisclosed mountain (probably Mount Hermon). In both cases, a cloud covers the mountain and God speaks from within the cloud. Moses (the Lawgiver) and Elijah (representing the Prophets) speak to Jesus about his impending “departure” (literally, the Greek word “exodos”) from this earth to establish a new “covenant” in which all who believe are His people, and He our God.

Everything in today’s chapter is a foreshadowing of the rest of the story. The mysterious mountaintop miracle connects what’s happening to Jesus’ story to what God was doing thousands of years earlier. The events are connected. It’s all part of one big story.

As I sit in the quiet this morning, I’m simply resting in the connections and flow of this Great Story. Daily circumstances so easily take up so much of my mindshare and they demand so much of my emotional reserves. It’s easy to forget the bigger picture. These momentary circumstances are connected to a larger story – my story – which is connected to other peoples’ stories – which is connected to the Great Story. If I lose sight of this, the daily circumstances easily become overwhelming, meaningless, futile even. Jesus reminds me that I need to shift focus and pull back on the camera to see the larger story.

And, I need to trust the Story.

I’m looking forward to connecting my dear friend with his beloved professor today.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.