"I wonder what sort of tale we've fallen into?" -Samwise Gamgee, Lord of the Rings
"The Road goes ever on and on. Down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, and I must follow, if I can. Pursuing it with eager feet, until it joins some larger way." -J.R.R. Tolkien
"We live in a far more dramatic, far more dangerous Story than we ever imagined. The reason we love The Chronicles of Narnia or Star Wars or The Matrix or The Lord of the Rings is because they are telling us something about our lives that we never, ever get on the evening news. Or from the pulpits. They are reminding us of the Epic we are created for.
THIS is the sort of tale we've fallen into. How would you live differently if you believed it to be true?...
Something has been calling to you all the days of your life. You've heard it on the wind and in the music you love, in the laughter and in the tears, and most especially in the stories that have captured your heart...
The Story God is telling...like every great story that echoes it...reminds us of three eternal truths it would be good to keep in mind as we take the next step out the door.
1) things are not what they seem: We live in a world with two halves, one part we can see and the other part that we cannot. We must live as though the unseen (the rest of reality) is more weighty and more real and more dangerous than the part of reality we can see.
2) we are at war: This is a love Story, set in teh midst of a life-and-death battle. This is no child's game. It's requires great sacrifices. Just look around you. Look at all the casualites strewn across the field. This is a war---a battle for the human heart. Remember...you have not blown it, and God is not holding out on you. The enemy of your heart will engage in whatever tactics he can to steal, kill, and destroy your heart.
3) you have a crucial role to play: It is a dangerous thing to underestimate your role in the Story. You will lose heart, and you will miss your cues. You are needed. We have reached the moment where we too, must find our our courage and rise up to recover our hearts and fight for the hearts of others. You won't lose heart if you know what's really going on here, where the Story is headed and what you Lover has promised you.
"The glory of God is man fully alive." -St. Ireneus
This is the gospel.
This is the Story we are living in."
-John Eldredge, Epic
