Finish the Story
"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing."
2 Timothy 4:6-8 ESV
Yesterday was the anniversary of the death of author J.R.R. Tolkien. I didn't realize this when I took off for my morning walk. In yesterday's post, I mentioned turning off my audiobook as a side comment. Well by chance the book was The Two Towers, the second part of Tolkien's epic, The Lord of the Rings.Those stories, and by extension Tolkien, have been a significant part of my life. The Hobbit is the first book I remember reading with chapters and no pictures. I recall sitting at my grandparent's home in the middle of a vast forest and spending my time content in a chair. Walking with Bilbo and the dwarves, feeling the fear of giant spiders and the lure of dragon's gold. I can remember wishing the story ended with the finding of the gold and hating the following fight between the dwarves, men and elves over the spoils.The idea of story came to life in my heart in those days. I did not want my life to be either an upward or downward spiral to death with no purpose. My heart burned to live a story worth telling. It wasn't long after this I would meet Jesus and find myself joining a people whose faith is built upon the greatest, most heroic, and complete story ever told.That God, having loved his lost people with a great love beyond compare, would engage in a millennia long campaign to restore them to his presence. A hero, making a choice with full knowledge of the cost to himself.I gradually came to realize the truth which has shaped my story in ways beyond my understanding. God, having accomplished His great redemptive work, now invites the redeemed into the quest. Life and death, sacrifice and gain, pain and joy all wrapped together for those who embrace the quest and to use the words of Jesus, "Take up their cross and follow me."Bilbo often wished he would have stayed home. He lamented the loss of comfort and safety. Yet when the journey was compete, he would never have missed it. The follower of Jesus ought to feel the same. Swept up on journey beyond understanding, walking through perils unheard of, and gaining rewards others will never begin to understand.Like Bilbo, like Paul in the verse above, I want to finish my journey. I want my life to tell a story which mattered. If you want to join me, just remember to count the cost first. It isn't easy, you will often wish for a safe return to a comfortable hole.
It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to. Do you realize that this is the very path that goes through Mirkwood, and that if you let it, it might take you to the Lonely Mountain or even further and to worse places?
Bilbo Baggins
Yet it's only out of your door where the story worth living can be found. I'll look for you out there.