Ok, so every summer I create my favorite thing in the entire world... my summer reading list. I've found that once I started college, my precious reading time was kidnapped by studying and projects and work. But the wonderful thing about being a student is, let's face it, summer. I wouldn't be able to live without time to read my books. Old and new.
Well, I just finished a new book Lineage of Grace by Francine Rivers. If you haven't read it, I highly suggest you do. I won't give away the details, but I will say that it's about five unlikely women in the Bible who God chose to do extraordinary things through. She has a follow up book about five unlikely men in the Bible who God chose to do extraordinatry things through also (that one is also on my list).
Ever since I was little I have been lost in my imagination, creating stories of my own, getting lost in a story and really growing to love the characters like they're my own family. This can be good and bad. Good because if it's a really good book, it makes me evaluate my life and usually my relationship with God. Bad because I'm not 100% here when I'm in a middle of a book. Ask my parents and brother... they're lucky I remember anything that is going on in real life because I'm so entranced with what's going on in my own little fantasy.
Well, this book that I just finished was one of those that just jostled my whole perspective. I realize that it is a historical fiction book, but still... it COULD have happened. We never know. All we know are the facts that were given to us in the Bible, but Rivers fills in the missing pieces, and I couldn't help but wonder... this could have happened. One of the stories in the book was about Mary and her life as Jesus' mother. How cool would that have been? To be the mother of Christ? Well, after reading the story through Rivers' eyes, I think that Mary had a pretty tough life. Growing up with all of her loved ones not believing how her son came to be... not believing that her son was the Messiah. How heartbroken she must have felt to know the Truth, but watch as her loved ones went about life not believing.
My mind then began walking along the track of "What would I have thought if I lived back then? Would I have seen a child or a King?" and I stopped what I was doing and said, "I have no idea". Think about it. Really think about it. It would have been weird. But then, I started thinking, what if I knew the Truth from the beginning like Mary and Joseph did, and I had the priviledge of watching Jesus grow up. I know He was fully God, but He was also fully man. I'm just overwhelmed by the thought that Jesus was a kid just like us, but He was perfect. He probably never fought with his siblings, never back sassed his parents, always wanted to do His Father's will. What a perfect example. I realize we can't be that exact same way and resist temptation everytime we are tempted, but we can surely try. Jesus was tempted the same as us, but He resisted every single time. I wish I could have seen Him grow up. That in itself would have been a miracle to witness the Lord growing up. But one day, I will see Him face to face and I can ask Him all the questions I want. Let me tell you, I'm excited. :)
This book was just another eye-opener to me that I may think I'm a good person, but really, I'm a sinner. I NEED Jesus every second of every day to help me live life according to His will. My heart is overflowing with gratitude and praise for what He did for us on the cross. I can't imagine the turmoil he went through on earth seeing how we are living in a world full of sin, yet claiming to be doing God's will. Every day is a struggle, but with Him to walk right next to us, we can get by with mercy and grace and strive to do the will of God as He did when He walked this earth.
Read the book. It's so good. It will give you a new perspective about how ordinary people did extraordinary things.
