Black, Red, and White

I love to read. Not as much as some people I know, but give me a really good book, a great storyline, and I can become lost. I'll dream about it, obsess over it, and find myself applying it to my daily experiences. Another admission: I love fantasy and (gasp) science fiction. (Yes, call me nerdy - and no, that doesn't automatically make me a "Trekky"). I've thought a lot about why and here is what I've come up with - I love "solving the puzzles" on my own. Meaning, if there's a parallel or application the author is trying to communicate using a made-up world or fantasy situations, I love discovering it. This will come as no shocker to those who know me well, but I don't really love being told what to do or what I've done wrong. However, I am very attentive to people's stories/testimonies and how those might relate to my life and what I can learn from it. John's become an expert at this in how he "backdoor confronts" me, not directly, but in such a way that I might make changes on my own accord and recognize where I've gone wrong in the past. You can bet, when it comes to sermons - I perk up right away as soon as a story is being told and remember it so much longer than I do the "bullet points".

Perhaps my perspective isn't alone, because it seems to me, that much of how Jesus communicated in the Gospel was through stories. He spoke so that if you were interested and cared, you would dig deep enough to get the point. Otherwise, it was just a good story.

This brings me to three of my favorite books of all time - BLACK, RED, and WHITE all written by Ted Dekker. Yes, they lie in the fanasty fiction genre of books, but they are so much more. The books cover two different worlds, one, about a man trying to shield the world from a terrorist plot, the other, a make-believe world with all sorts of parallels to the essence of Christianity. Not the "cultural Christians" that have obscured the message so much that people would have a hard time recognizing it. No, Ted Dekker weaves a tale that speaks of a Creator who is so in love with his creation that the land is known as "The Great Romance". He describes a man so in need of "answers" that he makes a mistake that threatens his entire people - and the deceiver who we all know is wrong, but somehow becomes so enticing that the strongest of characters falls for his lies. In book two, the most "un-orthodox" character that comes out of no where, teaches the most "visibly righteous" what love is really supposed to be - and even the reader finds themselves shocked when somehow "the bad guys" deserve redemption.

I love these books, because someone who has no interest in a spiritual message can still enjoy the story immensely, and certainly not feel at all preached to. But, more importantly, I love these books because they strip The "Message" down to what it's all supposed to be: A loving Creator, a choice made by man (and woman) that broke His heart, a world that is lost because of that choice, a sacrifice made by the only One who could make the world right again - and from the world's perspective, the most unusual choice of savior (how dare he extend love to the unlovely?) - and the beautiful joy of that original relationship the Creator made - restored......

These books were read "straight through" for me - they were released three months apart and I couldn't wait for the concluding book, but when it was done - I mourned the loss that there would be no more. They are engaging, haunting, gripping - I guarantee you won't forget the storyline..... Maybe, it's time to pick them up again.....

Have a blessed Easter everyone......