Monday Reflections: A view from the mountaintop

“When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.”
— The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I’ve been to the Mountaintop

For me, our students are my source for hope. They are the ones I see when I climb the proverbial “Mountaintop.” (The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Photo: the Ken Thompson Collection, General Board of Global Ministries)

Today is Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. He was born in 1929, which would have made him 97 years old today. We remember him as a leader and a prophet. I often wonder what he would say today about the state of our world. Oddly enough, I think we know what his thoughts would be.

In his last sermon, I’ve been to the Mountaintop, he begins with a question, “What period in history would I like to live in?” He accounts for different periods of time and the advances we have made as humanity, but he insists that his time, 1968, is the time he would rather live in. He saw an awakening in the hearts of Americans, African Americans, and people of all other races to make things right. His nonviolent movement was fueled by love and sustained by their faith. Acknowledging the struggle they were suffering, he reflected, “When it is dark enough, you can see the stars.”

This last sermon of his, preached the day before his assassination, is the most consequential for us today. When we think of our BIPOC students, first-generation students, LGBTQ+ students, Pell Grant students, DREAM Act students, and other underrepresented students, we know how difficult these times are for them. Their strife, and the strife of all our students, are those stars that shine “when it is dark enough.”

For me, our students are my source for hope. They are the ones I see when I climb the proverbial “Mountaintop.” Our work in campus ministry is hard. But we do it because we are equipping those who spread hope beyond the campus.

Next month is the 100th anniversary of Black History Month. Regardless of the political environment, I encourage you to celebrate it on your campus. It does not have to be expressed with big events. Here are some small ways you can celebrate it.

When darkness falls in our lives, may we have the wisdom to look up. That is where we can see the stars.