The Transfiguration of Christ

With a light touch of His hand Jesus woke Peter, James and John;
The Lord said to them: "Rise and follow Me, come, let us quickly go."
The glorious scene those three disciples were about to witness -
At that sleepdrunken moment, early in the morning, little did they know!

Outside the darkness lingered, it was still damp, and quite chilly;
It was that magical hour, right before the breaking of a new, sunny day.
They had not the slightest idea where there Master was taking them -
As was His habit, they simply assumed Jesus wanted to pray.

Very soon they found themselves climbing the winding, beaten track
That would bring them all the way to the top of Mount Tabor,
And as they walked there with Jesus, admiring the flaming sunrise;
They felt like the richest people on earth, blessed with God's favor.

When they'd finally reached the top, the disciples' eyes were heavy;
After all, it had been a long and difficult, exhausting climb…
Jesus had withdrawn Himself, He was deeply immersed in prayer;
So they spread their tunics on the ground, to lay down and rest a while.

Suddenly a bright, blinding light woke them out of their slumber -
There stood Jesus, His appearance transfigured with a celestial glow.
His face was radiant, like the sun at its zenith, at noon in the summer;
His clothes were of an unearthly white, whiter even than snow!

The next moment the prophets Moses and Elias appeared, in glory;
They were talking to Jesus about His forthcoming decease.
"Lord", muttered Peter, "If You wish, we could make three tabernacles";
For once, the apostle didn't really know what to say, he was ill at ease.

As Peter was still speaking, a Shekinah cloud overshadowed them all,
Out of which came a thundering voice, like the sound of a waterfall:
"This is My dearly beloved Son, in whom I greatly delight" -
"Listen to Him"; and before they could blink, it vanished from sight.

The disciples fell down on their knees, awestricken, trembling with fear;
"Arise, don't be afraid", Jesus reassured His friends, as He came near.
He gently touched them, and when they dared to look around -
The mountain was desolate, Moses and Elias were nowhere to be found.

Crickets were chirping, everything was back to the way it was before;
Jesus looked His normal self now, His face didn't shine anymore.
For a brief moment they had glimpsed His heavenly glory and splendor;
And as long as they lived, the three of them would always remember.

A little later they were headed back home, to the town of Capernaum,
Slowly and cautiously descending the steep mountain path.
"Tell the vision to no one, keep it in your hearts", Jesus charged them,
"Until after the Son of Man is risen from the dead."

Peter, James and John had been eyewitnesses of Christ's majesty,
And the disciples were changed people, as of that very special day…
They had come to fully grasp: It was the great I AM in the flesh -
Who humbly walked there with them, as a dear, dear friend in the way.