Take heart! I have overcome the world!

Sometime during C.S. Lewis' ministry, he encountered a Russian astronaut who had returned from space and reported that he had not found God. To us, the idea of going into space and finding God just hanging out by the sun seems ludicrous, but at that time, it was probably a reasonable supposition (given their limited knowledge, technological boundaries, etc.). Lewis replied by likening this astronaut's quest to find God in space to Hamlet going into the attic of his castle to find Shakespeare. 

Although I had heard this account previously, it struck me in a deeper way this week. God is our Creator, the Almighty, the One in whom we, "live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28)...all of these truths have a new and exciting meaning to me as I reflect on the reality that God is our playwright. Hamlet cannot say to Shakespeare, "I'm going to take this path, I'm going to pursue this goal. I’m going to make it happen." Rather, Hamlet is subject to the pen of Shakespeare, his creator. He is at the will of the ink of the author who thought of him, decided his story, and gave birth to his very existence by putting creative imagination and musings onto paper.

Given all of this, how is it possible that God looked at us with such loving eyes and decided, “I will write myself into your story.” This Easter, I’m really tuned into the reality that Jesus did not consider Himself to be one with God (Philippians 2:6), but humbled Himself by descending from His heavenly throne, coming into our story, walking on the same ground, sharing the same air…all so that He could serve, love, and give Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for my sins, your sins, the sins of the world – past present, and future.

Father, send your Spirit of revelation to continue to pull back the layers of our reality. We are your creation. We are living in a world whose expansive heavens are just Your footstool (Isaiah 66:1). But you looked on us with mercy and decided to write Yourself into our story. Thank You for the perfect blood that was spilled on the cross and made a way for us to enter Your presence. Thank You for being the author and playwright of our lives, the ending of which we already know through Jesus and His finished work at Cavalry. We cry, lift our hands, and revere the cross as we think upon Your death today, but we know that this story ends with victory. On this side of heaven, help us to trust in the words You spoke in the days leading to the cross: “Take heart! I have overcome the world!” (John 16:33). Yes, Lord! Though today we only see in a mirror dimly lit, one day we will see face to face (1 Corinthians 13:12). Keep drawing us, keep showing us, keep growing our trust in You, the ultimate playwright, author, and perfecter of our faiths, our lives, and our destinies as co-heirs with Christ. PRAISE, HONOR, AND GLORY TO THE KING OF KINGS! THE LORD OF LORDS! ::cheers and slams laptop on cafe floor::

Song for today