I was being held captive by the enemy in the Garden. All I desired was a piece of seemingly good fruit from this one tree, and I was incapable of tasting anything else. Grief had become anger, and anger had morphed into the all-consuming bitterness of an ungrateful heart.
I recall the festive red and green decorations and the tang of the pine boughs scenting the sanctuary. I remember how the brass of the live orchestra flashed with reflected light. I was aware of the skill of the assembled chorus as music that once gave me such joy resonated around me. Yet I felt nothing. I was like the dwarves of CS Lewis' Last Battle sitting at the great, heavenly banquet and tasting only sawdust.
Then Steve Green spoke.
He quietly addressed the audience with compassion and brought a transparent, startling message that at first glance did not align with the pageantry and abundance of the Christmas season: God plus nothing is enough. Everything we had could be lost. People, possessions, and position could vanish in a moment. All that we value, all those who we hold most dear, all the things that give us the illusion of security or the fleeting sensation of pleasure could--and many times would in the course of our lifetime--vanish. And, if we held on to them too tightly instead of clinging to the Cross, all that we are in our created wonder and purpose, could vanish along with them.
God plus nothing is enough.
Wow. That was radical. Did I believe that? Could I thank the LORD for all that I had--my husband, my children, my health, my security, my possessions, my freedoms, my life--and freely entrust it all to Him to do with as He wished? Would I still love and follow Him if everything in the Garden of my life withered? If my health failed? If my husband died? Worse yet, if my children died? If our finances failed and my security vanished? If my freedoms were lost? Would I still praise Him in the hour of those losses?
I wanted to.
So I prayed to the LORD and gave everyone and everything back to Him with childlike faith. I wanted to be thankful for His presence in the Garden with me once again. And, as I was carried out of the church by the joyful tide of Believers, I began to feel the stirrings of peace and hope in my heart once more.
How are you doing this holiday season? Have you lost your home to fire or flood? Has a relationship you cherished ended due to death, divorce, or differences? Have you experienced a financial correction or reversal? Are you fearful of the future? Is your job situation tenuous? Is your health suddenly failing? If so, you are in a perfect position to experience the wholeness of life in the center of His will. He is the Alpha and Omega, the One who created and endowed you with all the gifts you possess and the One to whom you will someday return. No one loves your more or cares so tenderly about the details of your life. He can be trusted with your today and all your tomorrows.
Let go of the tree and cling to the Cross. Rediscover peace and joy this Christmas season.
Kay O'Hara
November 2016
