The first threat was two and a half years ago on Tech's campus. And although it was slightly less explicit than my more recent experience, it probably changed my life in many ways. The details are not important for the point I will eventually make, but my dear friend, Anna, and I were held up at gunpoint outside our home late one Saturday night. We each were only carrying our cell phones, but we dropped them as we proved to our assailant that we had no money. He threatened to "shoot the h*** out of" us if we did not comply, and we ran inside the house as soon as he realized we were bankrupt.
Traumatizing. Shocking. Life-altering.
Two weeks ago I took one of my boys to the park for a picnic and time to play. When he repeatedly refused/ignored my insistence that it was time to go home, I had to inform him of the consequences of continued disobedience. His response? He turned around, put his hands on his hips, looked me in the eye and said, "I'm going to kill you." Wow. I asked for clarification because I did not really want to believe those were his words, but he readily confirmed my initial perception. Not so life-changing, but heart-breaking nonetheless.
The timing of this most recent event led me to consider Good Friday.
My little guy is typically quite affectionate and kind. Exhaustion is usually the catalyst in his Jekyll and Hyde transformation, and this incident was no exception. He really had no idea what the word "kill" even meant until we talked before time-out at home. But still, after spending the afternoon letting him play, teaching him new things, and delighting in all the ways God made him special, to watch his defiance and hear such bitter words was hurtful. I was sad.
I thought of Good Friday. The grief of our Heavenly Father as our words, "Crucify Him!", pierced His ears and His heart. All creation must have cringed, heaved, anguished. The words of the human language are not enough to capture my gratitude that His love is deeper than our rebellion.
And when I reconsider my first encounter, I rejoice. In light of Sunday, the empty tomb, the Risen Lord, the lesser of two deaths was the only threat that our would-be thief could make. Life is not contained in this body. Life cannot be contained, He never will be.
Alive, Forever, Amen by Travis Cottrell
"Death won't hurt me now because He has redeemed me
No grave will ever keep me from my King
No grave will ever keep me from my King
Alive, alive, alive hallelujah!
Alive! praise and glory to the Lamb!
Alive, alive, alive hallelujah!
Alive, forever, Amen."
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