The Glory of Kings

“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” Proverbs 25:2

We all have had them. Heroes. Role Models. People whom we never met nor ever will, but nevertheless people who have made an impact on who we were, who we are, and who we will become. The ones that affect us most deeply are the ones who come to us in childhood. To some they are sports figures, reaching and straining toward victory in order to inspire a young mind to never give up. To some they are musicians – singers, band members, who with their music give credence to a young dreamer’s dreams. To some they are great speakers, authors or movie stars.

To me many of them were characters. People who existed only on the page, or the screen, but regardless existed to inspire me with their stories. Anne Shirley, my kindred spirit, who taught me to see the beauty in life even when it is cruel, to press toward dreams and imagination and find a reason to keep getting up each morning. Anna Burenin spoke to me through her amazing courage in the face of poverty and servanthood, that even a peasant woman can become a princess. Maria Von Trapp gave me a song to sing and a hope for love to find me one day. There were others. Elizabeth Delaney, Lou McCloud, Michaela Quinn, Jo March, and so many more, some long forgotten through the years though the mark of their inspiration remained, some that were burned into my memory so deeply that they became part of me.

Two of those characters that became to me almost friends during the formidable years between adolescence and adulthood were Mulder and Scully. Through the experiences of their quest for the truth I learned much about the kind of love that matters, that changes people, that lasts. Through two very imperfect and unrefined souls, a journey ensued that first formed an enviable camaraderie, a balance of two extreme viewpoints, and eventually an inseparable bond that metamorphosed into a highly charged romantic love. A writer could only hope to create two people so perfectly sculpted with the pen to fit together so flawlessly. I suppose in every story I write for the rest of my life their impression will remain.

Why does this matter? I’m sure that’s the question on your mind. It’s the question I asked myself this past weekend as I was able to enjoy once more these beautiful characters on the screen together again after six years. Why should a set of fictional people mean anything more after one has left the theater? Especially to me, as a follower and lover of Christ, as one sent forth by Him to be light, to be salt, to make a difference?

It is because of Christ that they do matter. It is the reflection of him that makes them beautiful. It is sacrificial love that inspires us and makes us see God. It is the ability of a man and a woman to care more for the other than for their own life that helps us know just a fraction of what Christ felt as he hung on the cross in our place.

Take it for what it’s worth. I’m sure there are plenty of you that will read this and roll your eyes. That’s okay. I've always sort of danced to the beat of a different song than everyone else. But if there is a reader who nods their head in appreciation and understanding, then I’m glad I took the time to sort out my thoughts and give honor to my fictional friends Fox and Dana, who after fifteen years are still searching for the truth, searching for God, straining to know why they were put on this earth and who the Creator is, whether cruel or loving, and who we are in all of our evil intents.

I guess I see in them the reflection of so many people, who see God as fearful and harsh in his dealings with man, but who long for him and hope to know his love and forgiveness. God may conceal a matter. It is his right as God. But he rewards the soul that searches out his heart, who finds the truth through all the darkness of this life. His word promises it. His Son secured it.

It is only ours to accept it.

So, in the immortal words of a man who wants to believe, “The truth is out there.” Keep searching, and you’ll find it. You’ve got the word of the author of the universe on that one.