You're Gonna Be Ok

I met my husband shortly after becoming a Christian. If you knew him, you would totally get that he had a required reading list for me. I had never heard of C.S. Lewis until then, but fell in love with him through Narnia and have been a firm believer in Narnia since.
I have read it countless times out loud to my kids watched all the versions of all the movies, read the rest of Jack's books, read books about Jack and referenced Narnia in my life as a touch point for the real things.

I would say it's been a hard season, but aren't all seasons hard, even the good ones? No, this season has been heart wrenching and heart breaking. We have lived in faith-doing hard things, sometimes crazy things. But, I have believed through it all that Narnia was more real than this world. My Narnian belief has been that money, success, accolades are simply temporary and if we pour into people, family, our children, you know, the REAL things, all would be right in our world.

But we have been betrayed. We have been betrayed by those we have loved and sacrificed for. Heart broken barely touches the surface of what that means. I have lost faith in Narnia. I have questioned why. I have been angry at the sacrifices and counted us as fools. Not fools for Christ. Just simply fools.

In the movie, Paul, Apostle of Christ, Luke is in the dungeon below the Circus with fellow believers. A small child, who knows he is about to be fed to the lions, asks him, "Will it hurt." Luke gently says, "Yes, my child. it will hurt, but only for a minute, and then it will be O.k."

My husband told me this morning that line came from a recent event in Iraq, where Christians were being martyred. The church tried valiantly to get as many believers to safety as possible, but when it came to the point that many would be slain, the Bishop went among them and said, "it will be painful, but only for a moment, and then it will be o.k."

This world. Oh. It is painful. The more kids you have, the more people you love, the more you invest and sacrifice and give, the more potential loss and pain and hurt. And I honestly don't know how people who don't believe in God- believe in Narnia -manage it without drugs or denial or a good bit of both.

I know that Narnia is real. Hope is never lost. Hold on. Don't let go. Just stay one step closer, one step in front of the other. You'll get through this, just follow the light in the darkness. You are going to be ok. Narnia is real. True North exists and the Lion of Narnia, and Judah, knows your name. He knows my name. He catches every tear and promises peace and everlasting joy for those who continue to stand.

@Golden Grasses 2008-2013. All photographs, artwork and text are the property of the owner unless otherwise stated. Don't miss a thing! Subscribe to Golden Grasses and get our articles right to your inbox!