THE AMAZING VCR OF FAITH

I had my mind blown the first day my parents brought home our first VCR.  All of my dreams of one day playing real movies in my own house had come true. We all stared at it like the wheel had just been invented.  Then, we discovered the next big truth about such a glorious device: It was able to record television!  I can still remember how the room sounded once all of our breath was taken away by such wonder.  We instantly recorded the first show we could find, for like 30 seconds, and then played it back.  It might've been Donahue.  I can't remember.  Maybe Elvira.  Pure joy.

Now, some 35 years later, recording TV is child's play.  Not only can we record TV, but we can stream shows at our convenience or if we find a show playing  live, depending on our provider, we can just hit rewind and it plays it from the beginning. The difference nowadays, is that we expect it to do all of that plus so much more and with minimal cost and effort.  ​

In matters of faith, the first time I met the Lord (way back in '89), I was filled with wonder and awe and real, almost unexplainable, joy.  Every thing I discovered about God just blew my mind. Reading the Bible, praying, sharing the Gospel, doing ministry, all of it felt like I had won an eternal lottery where each second became better than the last.  
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Now, some 30 years later, following God is more complex than I ever could have imagined.  My last 30 years of faith have been filled with ups, downs, joys, pain, sorrow, heartbreak, disappointment, wonder, love, anger, depression, gratefulness, thankfulness, selfishness, ... well, you get the picture.  I guess Jesus said it best, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10)  And a full life he has definitely provided. 

Living a real life of faith is greater than the greatest movie or the wildest invention. Plus, these lives we've been given are being recorded.  And that's not just inside our memories. I've been under the impression that our lives will be replayed for us up in heaven on the Day of Judgment.  That sounds so embarrassing. Seriously.  I hope no one watches. I hope it's just a private screening between God and I.  Would you want it any other way?  Imagine getting up to heaven, and everyone who ever lived is sitting in that giant living room in the sky and the angels start rolling out the VCR and TV. Then they start playing all the VHS tapes of our lives.  Oh, shoot me now. The word humiliation sounds too glorious for how embarrassing that moment would be. Of course, this is not how it's going to happen.  I think it's more of a livestream event that's happening right now.  And when we enter into heaven, all we need to know is that our name is in the Lamb's Book of Life.  (See Rev 21:27)  Also, there is that one "book" ... we get glimpses of in Revelation and in Psalms. For example, look at this verse from Revelation 20:12, "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books." (NIV)  Or this verse from Psalm139:16  "You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed." (NLT)  

Sobering.

Anyway, in honor of VCR's, DVR's, BOOKS, SCROLLS, and every other device that can record, I have started this blog to not just place more words in print but to provide a place where we can post comments and share insights that will help all of us to have a "Life Book" worth reading.