Look to the Mountains

Sarah Torbeck reminds us that God uses the power of symbolism to communicate His faithfulness to His children. 

I flung myself down on the bed and wept into my pillow. I could feel the hot tears as they soaked into the pillowcase and onto my cheeks. It had been another dark day in the life, and I rolled over onto my back wondering how I was going endure another decade in the home of my youth.  

I slowly sat up and cast my eyes around my room, searching for some kind of distraction. I spied the latest copy of Reader’s Digest, on my dresser and swiftly grabbed it — randomly thumbing through the pages.  

A large photo of impressive, jagged mountains somewhere out West captured my attention and I paused to read the title: “A Draft of Beauty.” Mildly intrigued, I lay back down and began to read the article. It spoke about the effect of beauty on the human brain. The thesis suggested that one need only recall an image of discerned beauty to effect a calming, positive influence on the brain.  

Captivated, I immediately thought about the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. My parents had recently dragged us on another interminable camping trip through that mountain range (have I ever mentioned that I deplore camping?); and yet, despite my unnatural hatred of camping, I had been unable to dismiss the misty grandeur of that craggy and ancient mountain range. I closed my eyes and traced the sinuous horizon in my mind’s eye.  

The effect was immediate. My mind stopped racing, the tears slowed, and my heart began to glow.  

Who knew that Reader’s Digest dabbled in metaphysics?  

I have never forgotten that experience, and have since used this method to calm my senses and turn my heart toward God whenever I feel … unsettled. 

The journey to the beautiful mountain

For those of you who have been following me, you know that my late husband Steve, died after a painful and devastating illness. 

What you don’t know is that Steve actually died several times before God finally took him home. 

The genesis of Steve’s ultimate demise was actually etched in stone many years earlier, before we ever heard words like “terminal” or “life expectancy.” Steve was a policeman, who was seriously injured while attempting to apprehend a murder suspect. That encounter would result in his hospitalization. And even though he recovered from his initial injury, Steve continued to experience complications as a result of the injury. Some of the complications were inevitable; others were the result of medical mistakes. 

I suppose it really doesn’t matter why Steve was always in and out of operating rooms fighting for his life — and it was during one of these life-threatening events that Steve awoke from his death struggle and told me that he had been somewhere else before coming back.  

Be not alarmed. I’m not about to make a case for near-death experiences (although they have been well-documented and thoroughly analyzed at this point); I would simply like to share his words with you and allow you to draw your own conclusions: 

I was in darkness for a very short time before passing into a beautiful garden. I realized that I was surrounded by wild and domestic animals, but none of them were afraid of me. I started to walk toward them, when I suddenly realized that there was a large, beautiful mountain in the distance. A bright light was emanating from the far side, and I instinctively knew that it would take me a day to get there. I just knew that I had to get there. 

Steve woke up a short time later. We were never entirely certain about the animals in the garden, but we always felt quite certain that the luminous mountain was the holy dwelling of God:

You rugged mountains, why look with envy at the mountain where God has chosen to dwell, where the Lord resides forever? (Psalm 68:17) 

The years have ebbed and flowed since my initial meditations on the Smoky Mountain range and the holy mountain that Steve witnessed during his near-death encounter in the hospital … but my perceptions have crystallized into understanding.  

Mountains are a faithful and all-encompassing symbol regarding the nature of God and His constancy toward His children. Like a mountain, He is the stronghold of our spiritual landscape, and the final destination of our soul, as we journey toward Him. Even now … as I finish this article, the mountains of the Columbia Gorge are looming outside my little window, juxtaposed within my insignificant framework. 

Yet another reminder that God is always with us. 

I raise my eyes toward the mountains. From whence shall come my help? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. (Psalm 121:1-2) 

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Copyright 2024 Sarah Torbeck
Images: Photos 2 and 4, Canva; others copyright 2024 Sarah Torbeck, all rights reserved.