The Ultimate Ending

He has risen from the dead... Now I have told you. — Matthew 28:7 NIV

I went into the kitchen after a restless night, thinking about a friend recently diagnosed with a brain tumor considered terminal, and turned on the morning news. A man had just hijacked a car with a four-year-old boy inside. Police were chasing the driver through the streets of Denver in rush-hour traffic. A helicopter was filming the pursuit live, showing the car going eighty miles per hour through red lights and busy intersections.

I watched in horror, waiting for the accident that was sure to happen. Amazingly, this car kept missing others. The chase went on for ten minutes with dangerous maneuvers across an open field to access another busy highway, where the man drove the wrong way. Finally, he got a flat tire and the car spun to a stop. The suspect jumped out and started running, but police surrounded him. The chase was over. I felt exhausted but relieved that it ended safely, especially for the child in the back seat.

Later, I watched a rerun of the shocking events with my husband but was surprised to find that it was a totally different emotional experience for me.

I felt no fear because I knew the end of the story.

I kept thinking about the parallel of the car chase to my friend’s cancer diagnosis. Even as her story unfolds with frightening unknowns, I know the ultimate ending. God promises us eternal life. My friend knows that promise, too, and I can pray she keeps receiving comfort in believing.

Let Us Pray

Lord, You have already written the ending, which gives us hope while still living in the middle of our stories.

Further Reflection

Luke 24:1–8 NIV

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! remember how He told you, while He was still with you in galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’” Then they remembered His words.

~Carol Kuykendall

Excerpted with permission from Faith Over Fear, copyright Guideposts.

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Your Turn 

Don’t be afraid! Whatever it is that you’re facing right now in the natural demands fear, but the Lord has already written the end of the story! What fear are you placing in His hands today? Come share your thoughts with us. We want to hear from you about remembering the ultimate ending. ~ Devotionals Daily