A FAR BETTER COUNTRY

“And as He spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story." - The Last Battle, Chapter 16, CS Lewis

At the end of their earthly lives, at the finale of CS Lewis’s’ Narnia saga, Aslan ushers the Pevensie children into a Narnia remade, a world which was corrupted and fallen was born into a purer and right place – heaven.

Our world though seems to sit precariously on the edge of a knife. In the hardscrabble of what we know and in the rude and twisted streets, that knife cuts deep. Death, selfishness and greed bleed through and all we see is toil and the misery that the hands of men bring down upon one another. We pine for a day when all things would be made right and justice would prevail. For the one who holds faith, we hope and dream of another country past these shadowlands and hope in a province where a purer way, a vibrant life exists.

I understand that when one looks on this from the outside it looks like a foolish hope, a pie in the sky theology that helps one to cope with life, and that it is nothing but a fanciful crutch. And perhaps there is some truth to it being a crutch. Our hope builds perseverance to get through to that better place.

It is of no secret that this earth is full of cruel and faithless men whose gods are power and self, where might makes right and the kingdom of Constantine has taken root and demands itself as the final law. Goodness and morality cannot be found in the hearts of men, absolute power and the chasing of it withers and corrupts the very souls of those who chase it. Men on their own are broken and feckless beings. Because of their actions the world suffers and we struggle through the muck and the mire.

But there is one not stained by these things and who rises above the din and stands bright and pure. And He has said that He would comfort and strengthen us in the mire, “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Even in the dark we are comforted and assured and we are lain a foundation for hope and for courage. And this hope and courage sustains us on even during an ill diagnosis, the loss of a loved one, or murder or war or enmity. Remember, He has overcome these things and like a faithful and good parent doesn’t shield us from harsh realities but walks with us through it, guiding and instructing and using teachable moments to show a better path through the tumult of these days.

There is a true hope and for the one who has placed their faith in the Maker of All Good Things there will be a better country where the spoils of death have no say. A place where these things are burned up and forgotten. We here though, in this place find ourselves in a proving ground. For what we learn and what we become in this place affects what we become in the next. How we grow and develop here is made perfect and excelled upon in the next place lest we become mired in our own folly and we barely pass through “even though only as one escaping through the flames.” 1 Corinthians 3:15 How we live here and even how we think of our neighbor will be tested by the fire.

Rest assured though my friend, you who hold faith in a Lord of the Good, of the Meek, the Broken, the Humbled, the Small and Overlooked, the Abused and those Without, the Fatherless and the Foreigner in a strange land, you will find solace, unending peace and joy and a place at His table in that far better country. Hope reigns because of Him and nothing of the kingdom of men in all their pride can ever change that.

As Lewis had written about the Pevensie children when they passed from death to reality, “All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.”

And so, it shall be for you and for me. Look towards that newer country and always hold an expectant heart and gratitude and know that one day this will be but a passing memory. Even so, be about making this place good for all people.