Devotional Thought of the Day:

Whether it is the fantasy epics of Tolkein and Raymond Feist, or the novels of James Clavell, or the military and naval historical fiction of writers like WEB Griffin, Alexander Kent, or Dewey Lambdin, I love multi-volume epics,  the kind that chronicle a life time or more of the events of a group of peoples lives.   That detail their struggles, their weakness and their heartaches.

They create worlds in which we can get lost for a time, and in a way, we learn lessons from them.

Some of which can apply to the church.

The first of course is that we don’t know the end of the story.  We may know how it resolves – but the getting there and the character development is the story as well.  So to it is in our lives – what God uses to develop us into who we are.  We really don’t know what is around the corner – who will be introduced into the story, which struggles they will face, even who will be redeemed – and who will not!

So too are we not the writers of our own stories, the journeys and struggles, the unexpected joys, and the victories that seem more a blessing (or luck) than any skill we have.

The key in reading such a story is to entrust yourself to the writer- to buy into His storytelling.  The key to living in such a story, as we do in God’s story…is the same – to trust in Him, to wait for the resolution – and to enjoy the ride.

I get the feeling – that for many of us, this year will be another epic trek…. as we journey towards a peacful kingdom – and a feast that celebrates what we’ve found.

May we go it at God’s speed, and depending on His mercy!