The Why

Let me tell you a story.

Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a good king who loved his kingdom. He was kind, faithful, and steady. He wanted the best for his kingdom and his people, and had amazing plans to ensure they prospered and flourished. His laws were fair and for their ultimate good.

But his people — as we are today — were messy. They were broken. They were not always loving, kind, faithful, or steady. They killed. They lied. They cheated. They stole. They hurt themselves and each other. They ignored his laws and his plans. They did what was right in their own eyes, because they couldn’t — or wouldn’t — see how much their king cared for them.

Although they had cried for help in the midst of trouble before, and he had stepped in time and time again to rescue them from the jaws of death, he couldn’t reach them. He couldn’t draw near and be close to them, because of the stone surrounding their hearts and the selfishness that clouded their sight. No matter how often he saved them, they turned away from him again and again and again.

The king had every right to be angry with his people. He could have punished them, or bent them to his will and his laws. He could have abandoned his kingdom and found a new people, one that might love him back. But he was faithful to his people. He would never leave them behind or force their allegiance.

However, he wasn’t only faithful; he was also just. And as a good, just king, he could not ignore his people’s wrongdoing, their chaos and hurt. Every life they took demanded a life in return. Every scrap of food or coin they stole required something taken back. They were being eaten alive by their own poor choices. And payment for an entire kingdom’s worth of evil didn’t come cheap.

Above all else, though, one truth remained: He loved his people. He always had, and He always would. So, he made a choice.

No more last-minute rescues, no more temporary aid. There would be one payment for all his people’s mistakes, for the rest of time. One monumental, selfless sacrifice for the kingdom he loved so much. His son — his only son — would pay the price for every wicked man, woman, and child who lived and would ever live in his kingdom. The precious, priceless prince turned out to be the perfect offering for a multitude of wrongs.

To the people, it was unthinkable, unfathomable, that the king would have their prince carry such a cost. But for the king, it was unthinkable, unfathomable, to let his people continue to suffer, even at their own hands.

The prince went willingly to his death, even though it wasn’t easy. It wasn’t quick, or painless, or without great grief and anguish. He held the weight of an entire kingdom’s wrongdoing on his shoulders as he took his final breaths. As he suffered and died for the people he loved as much as his father did. As he wiped the slate clean for those who could never and would never deserve it.

Because it wasn’t about what they deserved. It was about a king’s love for his people, a love determined to save them from themselves, no matter how high the cost.

Let me tell you the truth.

There is someone who loves you like that.

There really is a King who is good and faithful, who loves you more than you could ever know. He has many names, but the one we know best is God. Thousands of years ago, He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to be the perfect, one-time sacrifice for every evil and wrong in the world. He sent His Son to die in our place — in yours and mine.

We all cheat, lie, steal, covet, and kill. We ignore His plans and do what feels good and seems right to us. We all make mistakes. But that is nowhere near the end of our story, because of God’s unfathomable love for us.

I say unfathomable because we cannot grasp the concept of unconditional love. We think, for whatever reason, that love is something we have to work for or earn. We believe that if we mess up enough, no one will love us anymore. And maybe that’s true, for us broken, imperfect humans. But not for God. He is faithful and unchanging, eternally loving, eternally merciful, and eternally kind.

There is no version of the human story where God does not love us. And there is nothing we can do to earn that love — or to lose it. It is ours, always and forever, the greatest gift ever given.

John 3:16, in the Bible, says this:

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Such a simple sentence, for such a life-changing, heartbreaking truth. And it’s reaffirmed over and over throughout the Bible:

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:6-8)

The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying:
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
     I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” (Jeremiah 31:3)

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:4-5)

“Though the mountains be shaken
    and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
    nor my covenant of peace be removed,”
    says the Lord, who has compassion on you. (Isaiah 54:10)

The big question for God has never been, How can I make them love me? but really, How can I show them they are eternally, irrevocably, unconditionally loved?

He loves you on good days and bad days. He loves you when you hurt others and yourself. He loves you when no one else does. He loves you no matter your story, your situation, your choices, your family, your job, your mistakes, your secrets, your heartache, your brokenness. He loves you, period.

In an ever-changing, ever-rotting world, He is the one perfect constant, a solid rock we can lean on without fear.

That is “the why”.

Why I’m alive today. Why I live where I live and work where I work. Why I can wake up every morning with the hope that today will be better than yesterday. Why I can look at my past and not be suffocated and trapped by words I shouldn’t have said and mistakes I shouldn’t have made. Why I know I have an amazing life ahead of me. Why I started this site. Why it’s so important for me to share this story, this truth that has saved my life and changed me forever.

It’s also why you’re here, alive and breathing. Why you wake up every day. Why, no matter what you’re walking through right now, you’re not walking alone. Why you have a future brighter and more beautiful than you could ever imagine.

God — the Creator of everything, the One who has always existed and will always exist, Author of every story ever told, Father to the fatherless, the God who sees, the ultimate Provider — loves you, now and forever. That’s the beginning of our story, and the end.