As it's the beginning of the year, I've re-started reading through the Bible this year, following the plan in Tabletalk. I was thankful that the reading for Monday the 2nd ended with Genesis 2. Why? Well, you see, I know what's going to happen and I know it's not good. Every time I read Genesis, I want it the whole story to be happy...beginning with God amazingly creating "all things," as the catechism says, and ending with God walking with Adam and Eve in Eden. I want to skip over the bad stuff and pretend it didn't happen. I want to rewrite it, like I rewrote
Romeo and Juliet in 9th grade, without those fools as the main characters. And I do try not to fall into the useless spiral of abusing Adam and Eve in my mind: "You idiots! What were you thinking? Too bad I wasn't there; no way would I have eaten that fruit."
I cringe in
Pride and Prejudice when Mr. Darcy proposes to Elizabeth the first time; I cringe in
Right Ho, Jeeves when Bertie bongs the fire alarm bell; and I cringe in
The Order of the Phoenix when Harry mistakenly believes Voldemort is torturing Sirius Black. Every story has its moment of conflict and decision, and since He is the source of stories, God's story, of course, is no different. It's just that this story is for real and I am living its sad consequences every minute.
But God is good...a better story-weaver than Shakespeare, better than Jane Austen, better than J.K. Rowling, better, even, than PG Wodehouse. And He can...He has!...redeemed this story. The other section of reading on Monday was from the beginning of Matthew and right there in 1:21, God is so gracious as to let me know that His story is going to have a good ending..."She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."
We still must fight the battles, but we can know the war is won!
