1002 屈辱之地
你若能做什么，求你怜悯我们，帮助我们。 《马可福音 9:22》
每次提升的欣喜过后，我们会突然被带下来，回到生活的真实所是，既不美丽，也无诗意，和兴奋。山顶的高度是以山谷的沉闷劳动来衡量，但在山谷中，那是我们必须为神的荣耀而活之处。我们在山上看到祂的荣耀，但我们从未在那里为祂的荣耀而活。正是在羞辱卑微之处，我们发现自己对神的真正价值——那就是我们忠诚体现所在。如果我们总是保持某种英雄般的强度，我们大多数的人是能做事的，那只是因为我们内心天然的自私。但神要我们在日常单调水平，按照我们与祂的个人关系生活在山谷中。彼得认为他们留在山上是很美好的事，但耶稣基督带着门徒下山，进入山谷，异象的真正含义在那里被解释出来（见马可福音9:5-6，马可福音 9:14-23）。
「你若能做什么…」要消除我们的怀疑，须经历羞辱谷。回顾你自己的经历，你会发现，直到你认识耶稣真正所是之前，你对祂的能力一直是个娴熟怀疑者。当你在山顶时，你能相信任何事，但当你面对山谷的现实时，又如何呢？你或许能够为你的成圣作见证，但对于现在你感到羞辱的事，你又如何呢？上次你在山上与神同在时，你看到天上地下所有的权柄都属于耶稣——只因为现处羞辱谷，你就会怀疑吗？
来自章伯斯的智慧
神设计环境要看我们如何行事。我们会成为天父的孩子？或会再次回到卑鄙、常识的态度？我们会冒一切风险并忠于祂吗？「你要至死忠心，我就赐给你生命的冠冕。」生命的冠冕意味着我将看到我的主最终获得了胜利，甚至在我身上也是。《至善—朝圣者歌集》
1002 The Place of Humiliation
If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. —Mark 9:22
After every time of exaltation, we are brought down with a sudden rush into things as they really are, where it is neither beautiful, poetic, nor thrilling. The height of the mountaintop is measured by the dismal drudgery of the valley, but it is in the valley that we have to live for the glory of God. We see His glory on the mountain, but we never live for His glory there. It is in the place of humiliation that we find our true worth to God— that is where our faithfulness is revealed. Most of us can do things if we are always at some heroic level of intensity, simply because of the natural selfishness of our own hearts. But God wants us to be at the drab everyday level, where we live in the valley according to our personal relationship with Him. Peter thought it would be a wonderful thing for them to remain on the mountain, but Jesus Christ took the disciples down from the mountain and into the valley, where the true meaning of the vision was explained (see Mark 9:5-6, Mark 9:14-23).
“If you can do anything….” It takes the valley of humiliation to remove the skepticism from us. Look back at your own experience and you will find that until you learned who Jesus really was, you were a skillful skeptic about His power. When you were on the mountaintop you could believe anything, but what about when you were faced with the facts of the valley? You may be able to give a testimony regarding your sanctification, but what about the thing that is a humiliation to you right now? The last time you were on the mountain with God, you saw that all the power in heaven and on earth belonged to Jesus— will you be skeptical now, simply because you are in the valley of humiliation?
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
God engineers circumstances to see what we will do. Will we be the children of our Father in heaven, or will we go back again to the meaner, common-sense attitude? Will we stake all and stand true to Him? “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” The crown of life means I shall see that my Lord has got the victory after all, even in me. The Highest Good—The Pilgrim’s Song Book, 530