Means and Ends

A stomach virus made its way through our house recently, and with it came much snuggling and cuddling on the couch for our family. When my daughter is sick, it seems that few things will make her feel better than time with Mommy and Daddy and watching “Elmo’s Adventures in Grouchland” over and over and over again. Multiple times a day, I’d hear, “Mommy? Watch Elmo’s blanket again?” (The movie stars Elmo’s blanket in a strong supporting role.) Wanting to help her forget her discomfort, I willingly obliged, watching Elmo’s escapades in the land of the grouches until we both knew every line by heart.

It was interesting to me how she would get into the story every time as though she had no idea how it was going to end. When Elmo would run into trouble, she would worry and furrow her brow and look to me for reassurance. When someone got hurt or cried or was sad, she checked with me, saying, “He okay?” When dramatic scenes were under way, she crawled into my lap, whimpering and sometimes crying huge, pitiful tears until the drama had ended. Over and over again, for the duration of the movie, I would say, “It’s okay, sweetie. Remember? He gets his blanket back at the end, and everything is all right.” She knew how the movie was going to end, but it seemed that she was more concerned with the things happening at that moment. It was as though she thought, “Yes, I know it’s going to be all right in the end, but what will poor Elmo have to endure to get there? What will happen in the meantime?” The end didn’t seem to matter nearly as much as the means. The end result was irrelevant as long as peril or uncertainty lied between now and then. The truth of the matter, for her, was that things might end up okay, but we weren’t there yet…so the end didn’t matter.

One day, as we sat on the couch and I again reassured her that eventually, all would be right in Elmo’s world again, I realized an odd similarity in how my daughter sees stories of her favorite characters, and how I – and maybe you – see life.

If we are followers of Christ, we know how the story ends. We know that regardless of what we may be facing today, things will turn out all right. The situation my still be ugly, but the big picture will certainly be beautiful. We must endure countless trials in the here and now, but those trials will lead us to a certain bliss that can only be fostered by trials and tribulations.

However, as true as we know that to be, it is easy for us to forget that truth in the mires of daily life. It is far too easy for us to lose our perspective, forgetting that our lives – even, or especially, our struggles – are resting in the Lord’s capable hands. When the car breaks down or the doctor delivers unexpected news or the month has again out lasted the money, the struggle of the moment outweighs the reality of eternity. We are temporarily blinded by trouble. Our view of our certain future is clouded. We panic and stress and wither into a pile of negativity, and all perspective is lost.

What we don’t realize in those moments is that God, like a patient parent, is sitting with us in those moments, smoothing our hair and holding us close, whispering His truth in our ears:

“It’s going to be okay. Remember? I’ve got this under control. The story looks bad now, but I promise that the end will be better. I promise that in the end, everything is going to be all right.

I promise. Things have worked out before, and they will work out this time.

Yes, this is hard. No, it might not look quite like you had hoped or would have chosen yourself, but trust me. Believe me.

Recognize who is holding you and who is making this promise to you. It’s going to be all right in the end because I have promised you that it would be.

I love you and I promise this to you.

It is going to be all right.”

What we have to do, in those moments, is press on. Choose to listen to the soft, patient, reassuring voice of truth, while ignoring the screams of worry and anxiety and fear. We must cast off the world’s reaction to the trials of life, trusting instead that through those trials, we will be brought closer to the perfect ending we believe is waiting for us. We must push through the moments when things appear to be going all wrong, and trust the One who says that in spite of how things may look, they really are going to be okay. We have to take a step of faith, trusting that this trial is a stepping stone on the path that will get us where we know we’ll end up. We have to choose to believe, because in the moment, our minds will wander from what we know, and our hearts will long for truth to anchor themselves. Believing is a choice, and it is ours to make.

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. (Jesus, in John 16:33)