JC's Weekly June 6th

" The glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
And all flesh shall see it together;
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (Isaiah 40:5)

It is an incredible, awesome fact that one day every living creature will see the openly revealed glory of God. We see His glory today, but we see it through weary, darkened eyes.

Have you ever been in a room filled with smoke from a fire? Not the grey or white smoke caused by burning bisquits in the oven, but the thick, black smoke which rises from intense heat and burning wood, fabric and oil? In this type of environment, one must crawl on the floor in search of oxygen, and if we try very hard, through the choking soot and ash we can make out the faint outline of a door, or window. In my case, having seen the door, every ounce of my being was spent trying to crawl along the floor, reaching it. And once through it, after a fit of coughing, sneezing and hacking, I was finally able (after what seemed forever), to take a deep breath of fresh, clean air. (Thankfully I wasn't in Los Angeles !)

The scenario above aptly describes, I think our lives today. We live in a world filled with the thick, black smoke of sin and evil. We spend our lives gasping for breath, struggling to find a door through which we might escape.

The difference between my experience and our world today, is that God has placed a great, shining door in the room of our world - a door that we can see from anywhere on earth, if we will only lift up our heads and see it. Unfortunately, it appears that many people are focused on the floor and the short gasps of oxygen that can be obtained there. They bump their way around the room we live in and horribly, never reach the door.

It is my job to tap people on the shoulder and point them to the door. This is very easy work for me, because although I have to continue to put up with the wheezing and sneezing of this smoke-filled world, I have been allowed to peek through the door and know what is on the other side.

In contrast to the smoke-filled room where we now find ourselves, on the other side of the door, are enormous, rolling hills, filled with every imaginable flower (and some you cannot even imagine). On these hills live beautiful creatures; there are majestic horses, lions and even some lambs - all of which live in perfect harmony. It is never night there and through all of the hills flows a great river, which is so clear that you cannot even see your reflection in it.

In the world beyond the door, one never has to gasp for breath. In fact, you could run for a thousand years and never even become tired. Beyond the door, there is no sickness, disease or pain. Believe it or not, I even saw a unicorn there.

Sometimes I have to scratch my head and wonder why more people aren't headed for the white door. But this weekend, I met someone who is and I want to introduce him to you. His name is Billy and he is twelve or thirteen years old. Billy doesn't fit into the box that most of us put twelve and thirteen year olds. Billy lives in a foster home far away from where he was born, because his father tried to kill him. He arrived in Texas without any possessions, except the most precious possession any of us can have - a key to the white door. Billy talked to me about his mom, who he prays for because she "lives with lots of men". He prays for his father who is in prison in another state. Billy was very excited this weekend, because the tooth fairy brought him seven dollars for his tooth. (In case you didn't know - the tooth fairy is a Christian).

Billy and I spent three days together and I have to tell you that those three days were some of the most rewarding I have had on this side of the white door. I think that once we pass through the door to that world with rolling hills, I will look up Billy and we will spend a few years talking about the tooth fairy.

In case it's not clear, the dark room in my story is this earth and the white door is Jesus Christ.
Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life."

Billy and I would like to encourage you to lift your head from the floor and look up and see Jesus. Yes, the smoke is dark and thick, and yes, we know you sometimes have to cough and sneeze and it is hard to crawl through this dark room, but if you will just look up, you can see Jesus and He really will give you a key to the door and let you briefly look on the other side. Billy and I can tell you that once you have seen what's over there, you will never be the same.

It's awfully hard to be sad once you have seen a unicorn.