1 John 4:7-12
7 Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.
Are you ever intrigued…entranced…enchanted…or appalled by the things you accidentally stumble upon while searching for something else on the internet? I had such an experience today, and I will say I was absolutely captivated by what I saw and couldn’t wait to share the parallel I found there as I consider the “heart” of the gospel.
Now, really, I was watching Darren’s video message about Holy Week events, and the link took me to Youtube. Along the right side of my screen, there were all these other options for videos I could access with a simple click of my mouse. One caught my attention and in a weak moment (after I watched every minute of Darren’s message) and in an attempt to procrastinate other more pressing things—like writing a devotional—I clicked on one of these. The caption was something like: “Empty chair at wedding left in memory of bride’s son who passed away. Groom surprises her with unexpected guest.” Wouldn’t you be tempted to click on this? Of course, you would!!
The video opens on this scene. A wedding is about to begin. The narrator tells the story of how the bride lost her young adult son a year or so earlier in an accident. She grieved this loss deeply, but a special love had come into her life. As one door closed, another had opened! She would soon meet her fiancé at the altar on this, her wedding day. Among the chairs set aside for family, there was an empty chair that represented the memory of her late son. As the wedding guests assembled, she was irritated to see a man she didn’t know take her “son’s” seat. Too late to confront the man, the wedding service began and she walked down the aisle to meet her intended there at the altar. As she arrived at the altar, her fiancé handed her a stethoscope and invited the stranger to come forward. He told her that after much searching, he had been able to find a man who owed his life to the deceased son. Her son had been an organ donor and through this gift, the man’s life had been saved. The heart she was able to hear beating through the stethoscope was her son’s transplanted heart!
I watched this in awe just five minutes before I was supposed to be on a Zoom meeting. I quickly dried my tears and hoped no one could tell I had been procrastinating fruitful work and crying through a Youtube video instead!
I have not been able to get this story out of my mind. It seems such a metaphor for the Christian life, particularly during Lent. I have to ask myself if the heart that beats through mine is the heart of Jesus Christ as I allow him to take over and cleanse and make my sin-diseased heart new? Is the life of Jesus Christ recreated in me so that people who have not seen Christ can meet him through me? Is the goodness and kindness and compassion of Christ evident in the way I live in this world?
Our lives have been saved by the generosity of our Savior! I so hope and pray that there will be something in my life that allows others to know they are in the presence—in some small way—of the Holy one who is generously recreating me!
May it be so, through the power of resurrection we encounter in this season!
Oh, generous God…Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days; let them flow in endless praise.
Take my will and make it thine; it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own; it shall be thy royal throne. AMEN.
Blessed Love,
Laura
