What I am humbly offering you today is the start of a Christian allegory of the journey of the soul. It is not enough to say "God loves you". This is true. But it helps to have a context to put it in. The Christian worldview is an exciting one complete with epic battles over the fate of humanity, supernatural beings, and love that transcends time and space. If you want a really good read look up The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis or The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien. These are true masterpieces. But since I am not a bachelor and/or do not have a wife to lighten my workload, you will have to be content with the following.
In the beginning…
…there was you and God. Surrounding you was the rest of creation, but that was ok because God was the center of it all. Every voice, unique and distinct, was lifted in song, creating a melody greater than the sum of any one part. And that was as it should be.
Then came a change, small at first, a discordant cord. Then came a crash, a break, a sense of… loss. But still there was God, shining in the center. And there was peace.
Then one day a messenger of God came before you.
“Would you like to be tested?” asked the angel.
“What would that entail?” you asked of the angel.
“God will be obscured from you. You will have a chance to hear the discordant voices. You will be given the power to choose your own path, to choose a way other than God.”
“But why would I choose to undergo such a test?”
“Because God, creator of all, sees your potential to become greater and wiser than you are now. You may choose to be tested. At the end there will be judgment. All that you have chosen that is not of God will be burned away. Your sins will be forgotten and your sacrifices and strengths perfected.”
Then the angel took you by the hand and showed you the earth. For the first time you became aware of the concepts of space and time. You became aware of separateness and isolation. And you felt small and trembled.
“Do not fear, little one,” said the angel. “You will begin as small and secret as a dream. Then you will grow. You will be helpless and vulnerable. You will learn to love by being loved first.”
But you could see so much sorrow and fear that you were not convinced.
“What happens to those who do not choose God?”
The angel stood aside and before you lay a void of agony and isolation.
“Who would choose to go there?” you asked.
“Those who refused to see the beauty within themselves and so did not honor it in others. They lived their lives in thoughtlessness, fear and dread. For they knew deep down that what they were doing was not right.”
“Why doesn’t God do something??”
“Because God loves us and respects our decisions. Their small decisions in life formed them and led them there. When God called to them, they did not recognize Him and turned away. They always thought they would spare themselves in the end. They were wrong.”
“Then why would I leave my place of safety?”
Again the angel moved and before you lay a place of trust, joy, growth, and harmony; souls gathered together at a feast. There is a sense of love, not of blind faith as you have known, but of a relationship whose bonds have been tried and found secure. The beauty of grace and gratitude is breathtaking; the souls are grateful for God’s love and grace and God is grateful for their steadfastness in adversity.
“What am I to do?” you asked the angel.
“Be who God created you to be. Sing your song to others. Love. Always. God will be with you. And so will I.”
May God Continue to Bless You!!
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