The second highest peak in Newfoundland, Gros Morne, “the Great Sombre,” is 802 metres high and offers a refreshing trek through balsam forest, a steep ascent of rocky gully, a summit with the best view of this scenic world heritage site and a gradual descent of eight kilometres.
Some years I wait for the perfect climbing day: sunny and the wind at no more than five kilometres. This year I waited three days, but took the fourth day because it was “do-able.”
I often recite the psalms of the ascent to worship and reflect upon Jesus and his disciples or Moses and the patriarchs ascending the mountains to pray. Gros Morne is about the same height as the Mount of Olives so the connection is not a stretch. This year, on June 27th, fresh from General Assembly, my thoughts were upon the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Matthew, Mark and Luke agree that it was the Spirit who led or drove Jesus into the wilderness as his first steps.
This is a wonderful starting point for the church or for any of us as we consider our place in the presence and work of God, the Holy Spirit. Pictures of the Israeli wilderness show that it was not a place of comfort. It looks like the top of Gros Morne. The pictures of the Israeli Negev, of brown, rocky mountains, come to mind as I leave the foothill path through the balsam forest to ascend the rocky gully. The gully is always a test of the heart. I feel the weight of the three litres of water I carry. I rejoice in my choice of quality hiking boots over sneakers. I discover the limits of my discipleship when I remember “His” sandals. Each steep step severs my attachment to extra baggage. Whatever happened yesterday and whatever is coming up tomorrow loses importance when you focus on survival today. The rests to recapture my breath help me realize how much more clearly I now see the world from this wasteland.
My journey across the top this year was disappointing. The clouds hung close, the wind carried a chill. It wasn’t a pleasant journey but it was the one I was meant to take.
The Holy Spirit as the One who leads or drives the church is often thought of as comforter and counsellor and friend. But the Holy Spirit may be the One who leads God’s people into the wilderness, a place for us to let go of our baggage and to celebrate the provision of what we really need. Jesus said, “And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8).
We often think of Jesus’ time in the wilderness, an experience of temptation, as a separation from his people. Through the experience of temptation, it was also a time of growing attachment with those for whom he would die. I think of the many wilderness experiences of the human journey and profound fellowships that grow out of hard and testing times. The Spirit displays how interwoven Jesus’ life became in ours and how entwined our lives should become in His. Time in the wilderness nurtures an appreciation of others. The Spirit is the one appointed to get us where we need to be in the quality of fellowship we are destined to enjoy.
About David Sutherland
Rev. Dr. David Sutherland is minister at St. Andrew’s, St. John’s.
