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Solitary Trip Up the Mountain

Let me start by saying that not all Batman movies are created equal. While George Clooney’s take on the role was awkward, at best, there is a strong argument for Michael Keaton vs. Christian Bale as the best caped crusader. If you’re a Batman fan, I’m sure you have an opinion!

My favorite of the trilogy is Batman Begins. In the film, a pre-Batman Bruce Wayne is on a journey to find a rare blue flower in the snowy mountains of Iceland. This climb tests him both physically and spiritually as he seeks his path in life. I specifically remember watching this scene and thinking this kind of solitary journey might be the right way to pursue a relationship with God. After all, people just might get in the way of me following Him up that mountain.

If you’ve been deeply hurt by a friend or family member, odds are your first instinct is to pull back. Get a few more miles and scars on your heart, and you can find yourself suspicious of relationships altogether. I suppose that’s why we try and climb the mountain alone. Deep down we know that we aren’t made to be isolated and alone, but at times it feels like our best option. The challenge with this way of thinking comes when we consider the call of Christ.

How can we expect to carry out a command like “Love your neighbor as yourself” if we aren’t in relationships with the people around us? There’s much we can do to transform our minds to think like Jesus, including studying Scripture and spending time in prayer. But we can’t truly be like Jesus by just bowing our heads or reading a devotional on our phones and then continuing to climb the mountain alone. God made us to grow in community with others. It doesn’t always feel comfortable, but it will be worth the effort to live as we were designed.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14