"Mountain Story"

People  from many nations will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the  mountain of the Lord, to the house of Jacob’s God. There he will teach  us his ways, and we will walk in his paths.”  ~ Isaiah 2:3a (NLT) 

I  must say writing this story was like climbing a mountain. I put out a  rough draft. Kristin went and did a great job editing it, and then  somehow it got deleted. Okay, no problem. Kristin started to write it  again and then life started to hit us and I got sick. We kept climbing  the mountain and Kristin finished the edit. Days go by and then I make a  few changes then she makes some changes then I make some so does she.  PHEW!!! And we finished, lol. I hope you enjoy the explanation knowing  that it was a journey for us to finish it :).

Toby  has come down from the mountain. He had a great journey, and he  couldn’t wait to tell all of his friends about it! This is part of a  Christian’s life where they have accepted Christ and walked with Him.  They’ve seen the goodness of following the Way, and now they want their  family and friends to experience the journey as well.

Toby  is now trying to convince them to go up the mountain where there is the  Lion. His three friends are Hope, Brute, and Clay. Each of his friends  listen to him and Hope is excited to go. Brute says it will be hard and  Clay is unsure. Toby keeps talking to them and eventually convinces them  to all go. The three friends are named very specifically. Hope is the  character that is always encouraging, backs Toby, and is hopeful. Brute  is the obstinate character. He wants to do things his own way and wants  others to do the work for him. Then there is Clay. He is the indecisive  wishy-washy character. We will all have friends that have similar  personalities as these three. How will we share the Gospel with them?  How will we help lead them on the right path?

The  journey has begun and all the sheep start to head towards the mountain.  Along the way Clay asks Toby many worrying questions. Toby simply  listens to him and reassures him. In the beginning of discipleship one  needs to simply listen to others. They will have a million questions and  most of them are from a worry state. Don’t try to answer them, but show  that you care by listening.

They  make it to the base of the mountain where they meet up with the  Mountain Guide (Jesus). He checks over their supplies and gives them  some advice. He tells them to stay on the path he has created and to  listen to Toby since he has been up there before. The Mountain Guide  then looks at Toby and says, “Toby, there will be times  when your friends will want to give up, it is important to encourage  them. Take heed to their needs, but you mustn’t carry their stuff. They  will have to carry their own weight. Finally, make sure you stay on the  path I’ve made.” Discipling others is a difficult job. Jesus  reminds us that this is an individual journey. We need to be encouraging  to others, but we can’t carry their stuff or weight. We can’t speak for  them. We can’t remove their sins or force them to forgive others. This  is a warning that God gives and it is wise to heed to it.

They  start up the mountain, and Toby’s friends want to hear all about the  Lion. He goes on to describe him and how wonderful he is. Hope and Clay  seem excited but Brute is not. When we share about Jesus, not everyone  will have the same image we do. They will have their own opinions about  Him. We are still in the listening phase with others.

As  the climb gets harder, the complaints start. Brute starts to say that  this was a mistake and Clay agrees with him. Toby ends up stopping the  group at a resting spot. Once they’ve rested, the sheep get back on the  path, but Clay is not getting up. Hope gives him a cheerful  encouragement and Brute makes fun of him. Toby moves past both of them  and sits next to Clay. He shares his own experience. Clay listens and  gets back on the path with the others. This is the first test for a  leader. Once someone states that they want to give up others with pipe  in their own advice first. The leader needs to go right to the person  and get on their level. This was a simple encouragement with a shared  experience. Some just want to know that you see them working hard and  that they are trying their best. They really don’t want to give up. They  are just tired. Simple encouragement and recognition will get them back  on the path.

The  sheep are back on the path, but the climb is getting more difficult.  Next to complain is Brute. With the success of encouraging Clay, Toby  readily thinks he can help Brute also. Brute doesn’t want to carry his  pack anymore, so Toby agrees to carry it for him. Brute immediately  smiles, but to Toby’s dismay he realizes how heavy it is to carry two  packs. They start up the path again, and Toby remembers what the  Mountain Guide said. He tells Brute that he can only carry it a little  farther. Brute is not pleased with this. Toby sets Brute’s pack down and  tells him to carry his pack now. They rest for a bit, and back on the  path they went. Toby looks behind but he doesn’t see Brute anymore.  Sadness overcomes him as he realizes that Brute left. As we are leading  others, there will be those that really don’t want to go on the journey.  They will complain and not want to do the work. We can’t force others  to Christ. We can’t do the work for them. This is one of the hardest  things to do. One must let them go.

Now  it’s just the three of them and they are almost at the top when they  hear a loud “ROAR!” They quickly hide behind a large rock. Hope is  confused and asks Toby if this is the Lion? Toby looks and sees that it  looks like the Lion but it is not.

“Stay  alert! Watch out! Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring  lion, searching for someone to devour.” — 1 Peter 5:8 TLV

The  devil does not want us to finish our journey. Scripture says that he is  like a lion but not the Lion. Watch out my friends, but don’t lose  heart.

Hope  and Clay turn to Toby for what to do. Toby sits and thinks. He comes up  with a plan to scare the lion away. They all work together and  successfully scare the lion away. Our friends will look to us to how to  defeat the devil. There are countless stories in the Bible of how God’s  people overcame their adversaries. It is the leaders role to trust that  God will give them victory.

They  have made it! The three sheep made it to the top of the mountain! They  looked around for the Lion, but didn’t see him at first. Then he comes  and simply looks at the sheep. As soon as they saw him, he was gone. The  three of them come together, and talk about how amazing the journey was  and how they too need to get others to come also. This is the end. The  leader has brought others to a solid walk with Jesus. The joy of seeing  Christ is enough. It is so worth it! Now go and bring others up the  mountain!

Thank  you for reading the explanation of the “Mountain Story”. If you haven’t  already, make sure you watch the read aloud by clicking below. This  story gave Kristin and I a great opportunity for a discussion with her  son Tommy. He thought that Toby was mean. He said that Toby should have  carried the pack all the way to the top. This allowed us to explain a  little bit about codependency and how it would have been unloving for  Toby the carry Brute’s pack. Tommy asked us many more questions about  this and I know that if this issue pops up in the future we can refer  back to Toby the Sheep as a Leader. I hope your kids have also been  blessed by these stories. May you know that we have been praying for all  those that read these books. We love you!

Jesus,  thank You so much for my journey. It was a tough one, but I stayed on  Your path. Right now my discipleship role is to my kids. Let me set an  example of following You. Teach me how to be encouraging. Teach me how  to lead. Let me give You full control. I know that everyone will have to  walk their own journey, and I trust that You will be with them. In Your  name I pray. Amen.