From Beginning to End

      By Fern Horst

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." (Revelation 1:8)

Many of us followed the heart-wrenching story recently of a family stranded in their car in the snowy mountains of Oregon for a week with little food and resources. When the Dad left the car after seven days in an attempt to get help, his wife and little girls had no way of knowing that would be the last they'd see him alive. He died trying to save them. What started out as a normal family holiday vacation turned into a life-changing event. They started out with a husband and a father, and now he's suddenly gone.

It would be easy to live in constant fear that the dearest people in our lives might be taken away from us at any moment, because in reality that can and does happen, as this recent event shows us. We are never guaranteed that any human will always be there for us. Many singles lament that they don't have a spouse to share life with, but even those who do have no guarantee that their spouse will always be there. Though not everyone will have a spouse to love their whole adult life, God gives each one of us people to love and care for. But there is no guarantee that any one particular person will always be with us.

If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour, however, we know that we will always have Him with us - the One who has been present with us since the moment we were conceived, and will be with us not only when we draw our last earthly breath, but will live with us throughout all eternity. He orchestrated our conception and the person we would become including our appearance, abilities and personality. He knows us better than any person ever will. He gives us each a purpose for our time here, and He has promised to equip us with all that we need to fulfill that purpose, including His constant help and presence. He is the Lord Jesus, who said, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending."

Having Christ's presence as our security, we can love others freely and without fear, just as God wants us to love. But as soon as we place our security in another person's presence with us, we have reason to live in fear and anxiety. We may even hold people at arm's length so that we don't ever have to experience losing them. It is normal to dread the thought of losing someone we love, and if we do, it is important that we allow ourselves to grieve that precious loss. Jesus Himself wept when his friend Lazarus died. We may lose things and people that are important to us, but we will never lose Christ. He is the constant in our lives from beginning to end. He will always be our Comforter, our Guide, and our Provider, and He will always bring people into our lives to love.

"Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen." (Jude 1:24-25)

© 2006 Fern Horst

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