I stopped reading The Game of Thrones after finishing the first book, never to pick up another.
Without revealing any spoilers, here is why. The title refers to the often terrible things people will do in pursuit of power; the alliances that are made and broken; all the acts people will perform to feed their all-consuming need to rule. As bad as all that can be, I didn’t stop reading the series because of those things. I stopped because the author kept killing off characters ... characters I cared about.
Among the foundational things writers are taught, there is a maxim: "Kill your darlings." It's supposed to be an editorial act, the eliminating by the author of his/her personal favorites; those that, quite often, actually detract from the story being told. The best writers do it all the time. And it is very rare for those assassinated darlings to ever return. But, I didn't stop reading The Game of Thrones novels because the author was killing off his darlings. I stopped because he was killing off mine! He had killed off so many of my favorite characters by the end of the first novel, I couldn't go on. As I have come to learn, he kept killing them off through all seven books.
I am not naive. I know that, in real life, the "game of thrones," whatever form it takes, is serious business. The desire to rule can be very intoxicating to those who "play." It's just that I believe that, in reality, there is someone else in the picture, someone not present in those Game of Thrones novels. Consider this week’s 1st Samuel scripture. God makes it clear to the Prophet Samual that He is is very serious about who leads His people. He expects obedience and loyalty from the one who occupies the "throne." But God is patient, as well. God gives leaders chance after chance to get it right. True, God may already have laid the plan for who will replace them, but the story doesn’t stop there.
God removes His spirit from Saul and bestows it on Jesse's youngest; David, the last person any contemporary would have picked for King. That is, if they had thought of David at all, something which his own father failed to do. David was the runt, the youngest, the smallest: how could he become a king? But, all that aside, though hand-chosen by God to lead God’s people, David did not immediately ascend to the throne.
In fact, God allowed Saul to occupy the throne for quite a long time after He had already decided to replace him. Now, why should he do that? Why not remove Saul, immediately? When we stop and think about it, we realize that God gave Saul such a long lead time so Saul might choose true repentance. But, the throne meant more to Saul than his relationship with God. For Saul, the game of thrones was over. God had already decided to take the throne from him. But, for a good long while, Saul could still have chosen to relinquish the throne, with all the games surrounding it. He could have returned the throne to God and sought forgiveness for his disobedience.
“God doesn’t look at things like humans do. Humans see only what is visible to the eyes, but the LORD sees into the heart." God exhibits grace toward even those who have broken covenant with Him, patiently waiting, giving them a chance to repent. And therein lies the true difference between many a fiction author and the author of our salvation:
God wants His darlings to live.
_________________________
PHOTO: “Dragon” Copenhagen, Denmark 2018 by Steve Orr
_________________________
Join us Friday morning for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. Bring your favorite breakfast beverage to the Zoom call. We kick off at 8:00, visiting and catching up. That’s followed by a little prayer time, reading scriptures, and discussing how we could live by them. It’s a wonderful hour … and all too short.
Blessings,
Steve
Contact me for the Zoom link
NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera if you don’t wish to be seen and to mute the microphone if you don’t wish to speak.
SCRIPTURES FOR THE COMING WEEK
Find them here:
1 Samuel 15:34 - 16:13
Psalm 20
Ezekiel 17:22-24
Psalm 92:1-4, 12-15
2 Corinthians 5:6-10, (11-13), 14-17
Mark 4:26-34
No comments:
Post a Comment