The First Word and the Last

A meditation on love in a time of affliction.

Today’s musical pairing is the instrumental version of “Saturn,” from Sleeping at Last. See the video below.

“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.”
1 John 4:16

“Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38–39

Day 2. 222,642 confirmed cases, 9,115 deaths globally.

There are times when all our confidence is stripped away. Times it becomes clear that all our strengths, all our defenses, all the moats and walls and treasuries we build to secure ourselves against misfortune are nothing more than a vast and magnificent optical illusion.

To see ourselves honestly in these moments is to see our vulnerability and need. We see the reality of our circumstances. We see our need, O Lord, for you.

I experienced this myself when I learned my neck was broken and my Olympic dream was done. I know brothers and sisters who experienced it, too. The moment they lost everything—and they laughed. The moment the world stripped everything away and they were left alone with the love of God.

When all else is gone, the one thing that remains is the one thing needful. The one thing that never ceases or fades, the one thing we can never be separated from, is all we need and more. Once we realize this, we discover we have nothing to fear.

I hope my children learn this secret someday. Love is not a luxury for times of plenty. It is not a minor note in the song of the cosmos. It is not a story we tell ourselves in the dark of night. It is more real than anything else. It ...