Life from a Distance
Zombies. The thing about them is this: they look alive, because they’re moving and stuff, but they’re actually dead. You can tell they’re dead by their decaying flesh; it’s gross. This looking alive but being dead can be confusing. Think about any zombie movie you’ve seen (if you’ve seen any). Doesn’t it always start out with some overly naïve person thinking that a friend or loved one is approaching them? Then BAM! that loved one has crazy eyes and a hankering for brains! The scariest part about the zombie is that if you’re not careful, and don’t keep all zombie fluids out of your mouth, eyes and bloodstream, you’ll become one.
Do you think you’ve ever let down your guard and some silly thought pattern or fear or a bad relationship infected your life and turned you into a zombie? Do you think that you might be one right now? Let’s go over the symptoms together. Do you look alive from a distance, because you come to church or know all the words to a David Crowder song or have a Bible verse taped to your mirror, but upon close investigation you’re really decaying and falling apart? Do you eat up life-giving teachings or relationships, only continuing to decompose? Jesus said that he came to give life—life to the fullest. When Jesus overcame death in his resurrection, he not only conquered the cessation of physical life, but destroyed all the things that separate us from God. Still, sometimes I feel like I’m just walking around looking alive to people from a distance, but dying inside.
The moral of the story is this: don’t have crazy eyes and eat brains (metaphorically) but find ways to connect with the Life-Giver, nay, the Life-to-the-Fullest-Giver!
–Justin Allen