Breaking Free

... continued from previous two posts

But then he changed his mind. Why would he head back to the castle, back to that prison, when that was the last place he wanted to be? He knew he did not belong there. So he switched direction and headed towards the far hills, into lands unknown and unexplored. 

As he drew closer to the hills, he observed one lonely tower built into the side of the rock. Curiosity took hold of him and he decided to head towards this tower. He dug his heels into the side of his horse and rode faster until, finally, he was at the base of the tower. He looked up and...

----

While she was still staring out the window, she noticed a black speck growing larger and larger as it headed towards her. What could it be and why was it coming to her lonely tower? She looked closer and as it continued moving, she began to make out the shape of a man upon a horse.

She thought she had lost all hope long ago but as her breathing quickened and her heart skipped a beat, she wondered if there was still room in her heart for hope. Maybe it wasn't such a terrible thing. If she had never hoped, she wouldn't have been hurt as she was, but the feeling before the fall was indescribable. So as he reached the base of the tower, hope filled her once more and she looked down and....

---

....he saw her looking down at him. And in that moment, he knew that he was there to free her. So he headed towards the door and hacked away at the thick wood until he finally made a space big enough to get through. 

... she saw him looking up at her and knew she must show him the love she knew she had in her somewhere. So she removed a brick in the wall, reached in, and took out the keys and begin unlocking doors all the way down the tower.

It was slow work, but he kept breaking down the doors as he went up each new set of stairs until they reached the same staircase. He stopped at the bottom and she waited at the top and then slowly, they began moving towards each other. After what could have been a lifetime, they reached the same step. He took her into his arms and carried her to the base of the castle and placed her gently upon his horse. He led the horse away from the tower and back towards his home. 

As they went, they talked and laughed together and each began to find in the other just what they needed. She found love and care and he found love and acceptance. All the past hurts and disappointments were only steps to lead them both here. It would take time for everything to heal completely but for now, they had each other.

Inside the Walls

...continued from the previous post

He sat beneath the tall cypress as the wind sang through the leaves. He was so grateful to finally escape even though he knew he would not be able to stay away for long. The castle walls could be so confining. Inside, all the pleasures of the world were at his fingertips, yet he was not happy there. He longed for love and joy yet he could never find it. All those walls contained were disappointment and regret. Regret for the life he might have lived if he had taken his chance and disappointment that the chance would not be given to him again.

It might seem that anyone would like to live as he did with all the luxuries and excitement he had. But as the years passed the same, the fine things lost their newness and the events stopped pleasing him. More than anything, he wanted something worth living for, but nothing came.

He had given up on the hope of anything different years ago. He was a prince and this was his life - find a princess, make her your queen, take your place on the throne, and raise up a son to do the same. But he was so tired of all the princesses. All the same - all boring and ignorant. This was not what he wanted from life, but it was all he could get. 

The wind continued to sway the cypress above him as he thought on these things. The tree's shadow grew longer as the sun got closer to the horizon. Reluctantly, he got up and began to head for home.

to be continued...

Her Own Prisoner

She rested her head on her hands as she looked out upon the green valley below her. She would never walk through those trees or run down those grassy hills. She could only stare at them from the confines of her tower room. It may seem easy to determine where this story is going, but unlike other tales of the same beginning, here there is no dragon guarding the castle, no witch or curse upon this princess. No, she was not forced to live this life. She chose to walk up these steps to the highest room in the tallest tower. She chose to lock all the doors behind her. She voluntarily gave up all the possible pleasures of that green valley below her because she believed its pains to be too great. Too much hurt and sadness there. So up she climbed to the top of this tower where she taught herself not to feel. 

At first, she entertained a vain fancy that someone would miss her and come to her rescue but she no longer hoped for rescue. She did not need it or even want it. She was happy here in her tower without anyone to wound her heart. Some days, however, as she heard the birds singing or felt a soft breeze hit her cheek, she remembered something better - an vague idea that maybe the world she left behind wasn't all pain. At those times, she tried quickly to relive the events that had caused her to leave and she pushed any ideas of true happiness to the back of her mind. This was the best she could do now.

So she sat in this tower, absent of pain but also of pleasure, and imagined this life was as good as it could be and she wanted nothing more. She eventually came to believe this lie and gave up all thoughts of anything better.

The One Forgotten

They walk past your door without stopping to see if you're hungry. They ask if you want to go somewhere then neglect to wait for you. They tell you their plans but leave you out of them. They give no reason, no answer for their behavior towards you. They stop pretending to care when you are left out. So you are left there, wondering: why are you forgotten? Or is it more than just forgetfulness? Maybe they have stopped enjoying your company or think you are an embarrassment. Whatever the reason, you are left alone.

This has happened before. In fact, you have quite a history of being forgotten. People include you for a while, use you for what they need, then leave. And there you are once more - in that place no one wants to be. And as you throw yourself on your bed and sob into your pillow yet again, you wonder why? Why are you so easily forgotten? Why don't people care? And why is inclusion so important to you?

It is at this time you remember the one you have forgotten. One who has always loved you and desired to be with you yet whom you have rejected and left out of so many areas of your life. One who calls out your name every moment but you usually choose to ignore this cry. Despite all you've done to him, you know he will still be there for you now. So, in desperation, you reach out to the forgotten one who has promised not to forget you. And as you do so, he reaches down to you and picks you up into his loving arms. He whispers, "I love you more than you can know and I will never forget you, my child."

There's no Comfort in the Waiting Here

Today, when we were in line for lunch, Ben asked, "What are we waiting for?" He was asking what food (or substance we like to think is food) was in the line in front of us. He went ahead to check but I stayed in line and thought about how often I just stand there out of habit. I check occasionally to see what is on the day's menu, but so often I stay in line, get to the front, see the food, and then decide I want pizza. It's a slight waste of time but I usually don't mind since I get to wait with my friends. Today, however, I wondered I thought about how we wait out of habit in other areas of life as well. 

My life has been a series of waiting periods. Waiting to start school, then to get into the upper grades, then middle school, then high school. In high school I thought I was almost done waiting. In college, it would all get better. Now here I am, and I'm still waiting. Waiting to graduate, to get married, start a family, have a career, whatever. I've realized the waiting doesn't ever stop. So maybe it's time we asked ourselves, "What are we waiting for?" Are we standing in a line waiting for Aramark "food" just because everyone else is or because that's what we've been told? If we aren't careful, we will be in that same line our whole lives. It's time we stopped and really examined what the line is for. It is the line of those who have forgotten why we are here, those who have been so caught up in the routine, they've lost sight of the eternal. Do we want to be just another number in the line? Another defeated, burnt out, conquered Christian? Is that the life Jesus called us to? 

True Christianity demands us to step out of line, to stop waiting. How can we run the race with endurance if we aren't running? What's the use of carrying our cross if we have nowhere to carry it to? So, what are we waiting for, an incomplete life that does not follow God's commands? If that is the case, then why are we waiting? James 1:2 says "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." Let's be doers instead of just another number in the line of the defeated. 

Without Sunlight

A couple days ago, I was reading Romans 8 and listening to music at the same time. I don't usually listen to music when I read the Bible but for some reason, I felt like doing so. As I was reading and listening, a lyric in the song stuck out at me: "for now, I'll wait for the sun to shine again. For now, I'll wait for the rain to pass away." I've thought that many times before and I've tried to use that knowledge to get me through difficult times. But I liked the way this was phrased so I wrote it down then went back to reading Romans 8. 

As I was reading, a certain verse impacted me. I've known Romans 8:38-39 about how nothing can separate us from God's love for awhile. I'm sure I had to memorize it for awana more than once. But I've never given the context of this verse the significance it deserves. So this time, I noticed and really thought about Romans 8:35-37:

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:

'For your sake we face death all day long: we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.'

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."

All the things in that list are things we can let get in the way of our relationship with God. God's love goes beyond all those things. His love reaches us no matter what. But I don't think that is the point these verses are making. They say we are the conquerors and that we face death for his sake. Despite all we face, we can't let anything separate us from Christ's love. I think that is where we've missed the point - we have a responsibility too. 

Now, back to the song. I thought it was a good lyric at first, but these verses changed my opinion. A relationship goes both ways and our relationship with Christ is no different. I think it's not so much about waiting for the sun to shine again. It's about keeping your eyes on the sun even when the skies are cloudy. We must stay focused on Christ even when we face hardships because nothing should separate us from his loved. We are not called to wait until he rescues us from trouble to follow Him. We are called to follow through the good and the bad, to focus on Him even when life is hard, to feel the sun even when it's raining.