“From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.” (Matthew 16:21 NKJV).

“But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.” So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word. And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.” (Matthew 28: 5-10 NKJV).

Here we are in the midst of the Christmas holiday season, and God gave me these scriptures to ponder that tend to be associated with Easter.  While this is the season that we do indeed celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for many, this year has been one where many struggle to celebrate.  The way in which we celebrate, for some will look quite different from the traditional way that we have celebrated in the past both physically and emotionally.  This year has brought on feelings that seem more associated with the feelings that the disciples, Mary Magdalene, and Mary, mother of Jesus must have been experiencing at the time of Jesus’s crucifixion and death. Fear, hopelessness, dread, despair, depression, uncertainty, and confusion have been some of the feelings associated, right? 

We tend to minimize our movie watching in my house when my oldest daughter is awake because she is not quite a fan of “AnyFlix.”  As we have tried to ease different movies in over time, I started noticing a pattern.  It is not the movie that she does not like per se, but rather she does not like when the plot thickens, it appears that the main characters are losing, or that a challenging circumstance is presented that seems insurmountable.  On several occasions, my husband and I have tried to encourage her to just keep watching, particularly in some of the movies where we knew the end result. 

One movie that I can recall watching with my sweet girl was The Prince of Egypt. Here I am thinking that this would be a good Sunday afternoon movie to watch to tag along with the lesson that she had just learned in Sunday School, but I was wrong.  My child understandably struggled with watching the images that were depicted in the animated hieroglyphic scene with the babies being slain and the imagery of the horrific way that the Israelites were treated by the Egyptians.  I have to agree, as an adult, those scenes were hard to watch, and nevertheless, because I knew the outcome of the movie, those parts were a little easier to endure.  Despite my child’s concerns during the ugly and uncomfortable parts of the movie, I sat with her and encouraged her to keep watching and not stop in the middle of the movie. I knew that the victorious scenes were on the way if she could just stay the course and watch until the end she too would see God’s miraculous wonders be revealed.

Most recently, we watched the phenomenal movie Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey, and we were super excited to take some time as a family to watch this holiday film.  We had heard rave reviews about the movie so we decided to see what the buzz was all about.  Without spoiling the movie for anyone who has not seen it, (and if you have not, you should!!) let’s just say that after starting off on a high note, some lows were then depicted.  It was at that point that, once again, my child wanted to stop watching the movie.  She started to check out, and she wanted to turn it off.  While I had not seen the outcome of this movie, this time around, I knew there would be more to the story.  We sat together as a family and finished watching the movie.  By the end, my child was encouraged, excited, and was singing songs from the film expressing how much she really enjoyed watching. I commended her for staying the course and watching until the end. We had a discussion of what it meant to see the movie through and conversed about why Mommy and Daddy wanted her to watch until the end.  She was glad that she did.

Just like my child, we as children of God experience times in our own movies, where we want to stop watching. We want to turn it off. We want to check out and not keep the movie playing because the scenes are just too dramatic, too heavy, too scary, or too uncertain to handle, but guess what? We must keep going.  Keep watching. There is more that God has in store, and He is writing the script of our movie with the underlying theme of working ALL things together for our good as Romans 8:28 reminds us. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who have been the called according to his purpose.”  While all things might not be good or feel good, God, the master writer’s pen is scripting a beautiful story within our lives. His all wise pen is meticulously crafting each scene, each act, and each situation with our good on His mind.  We just have to let the movie of our lives keep playing out and trust in His word that He is for us, and when He is for us, who can be against us, as Romans 8:31 reflects?   He already promised to give us beauty for ashes and turn our sorrow into joy. We just have to press towards those promises and remember that the only way to the other side is THROUGH. Not over. Not under. Not around, but through.

Imagine if Mary, Mary Magdalene and the disciples would have stopped watching in the middle of the movie.  What conclusion would they have been left with?  They would have thought that all hope was lost. They would have been left with the belief that their Savior was dead, and perhaps all that He had preached about, taught them, and demonstrated was in vain, or even worse, a lie.  They might have thought that the enemy had won, and they were the ones who were defeated. They might have been stuck with feelings of confusion and fear, but they kept watching the movie.  The story was not over yet. The film continued to roll.  The death of Jesus was not the end. He rose and still lives within each of us who believe today!  I hope that you are getting excited, because the more I ponder on this, the more excited I get!

As a matter of fact, I encourage you to think back over your life when there were other scenes in your movie when you wanted to stop watching, turn it off, and toss something at the movie screen, but you kept watching and came through the to the next scene.  Just like Job kept watching after losing everything and then being fully restored with double for all of his trouble, keep watching. Just like Sarah and Abraham kept watching despite it taking many years to have Isaac, keep watching. Just like David kept watching on numerous occasions through death threats, loss, shame, depression, and fear, let the scenes play out. Through great loss Naomi kept watching and Ruth kept watching. I could keep the list going, but for time’s sake, I will stop there. Keep letting your movie play out. Do not stop watching in the middle of the movie.  Your story isn’t over yet. Victory is on the other side of all of these challenges, discomforts, and trials. There is so much more to your story. This is not the end.  Your latter will be greater than your past in the mighty name of Jesus!

That break-up or divorce is not the end of your story. Don’t stop the film now. The master writer is in the business of restoring souls and mending broken hearts.  That job loss is not the end of the story, please stay tuned in. The one with the pen in His hand is a provider. That medical diagnosis is a scene in your story, but not the final scene.  Keep watching! More scenes are on the way.  Remember that the author, producer, and director is indeed a healer. The death of your beloved relative is not the end of the movie.  While life may feel that way right now, it is not the end. Just keep watching for the next scene. I am certain that Our Father, God has more in store for your next scenes and is there to comfort you in your time of mourning.  All of the challenges that have transpired this year will not be where your story ends.  So I urge you to stay tuned for what is next.  Don’t turn the movie off, don’t check out, and don’t go into hiding.  Your movie is not done yet!  More awe inspiring, beautiful, glorious, and victorious scenes are surely on the way!

Reflect & Relate

Think of a time that you wanted to stop watching in the middle of your life’s movie but you kept the film rolling.  How did you press through despite the struggle, and what are some victories that you can recall as a result of staying the course and letting the next scene play out?

Let us pray

Dear God, my Father… I first want to say thank you.  Thank you for all that you have already done in my life, all that you are doing, and all that you are going to do.  Please give me the strength to keep watching through all of the scenes of my life’s movie and trusting in you with confidence that you are indeed working every minute, every second, every hour, every moment, and every day out for my good. You are the best producer, writer, and director of my life. Help me to remember that just like you have brought me through before, you will do it again.  Just like Jesus did not stay in the grave, that same resurrection power is available in my situation today. I just want to praise you for being my hope, healer, deliverer, and restorer.  I am victorious in you.  I love and praise your wonderful name.  In the name of Jesus, Amen!

Please be sure to check out Quinnise’s new book, “A Glimpse of Our Father: Lessons Parenthood Reveals for All of God’s Children.”