Christopher nodded. “It is, and excuse me for being religious, but I can’t fathom how people think it just happened, that life is the result of some cosmic accident.”
“I think it’s because we don’t think about it. We don’t ask questions. We believe what we’re told.”
Well at least she’d thought about this. Wisdom was knocking at her door. “I think you’re right, Ruby. And there are too many distractions. People are scared of stillness.”
“That’s a good way of looking at it. You know, it was wanting stillness and nature that brought me to this island, to the festival.”
Christopher knew it was best for him to listen, for Ruby to speak. She’d come back to the island for healing. He watched as she scanned the peaceful blue water. She was a beautiful girl. He said a silent prayer asking for God’s peace to flow over and into her.
She sat forward. “Do whales ever come into the bay?”
He picked up her scent. Better than the frangipani tree, and he loved that smell. “Some occasionally drifted into the bay. Not a regular occurrence. I’ve heard stories, but I’ve never seen one.”
She turned to look at him. “There’s a story in the bible about a whale, isn’t there?”
“Maybe a whale or a very big fish. Big enough to hold a man for a few days.”
“Do you believe that?”
So much for not talking. “I do.”
“What was the purpose?”
“Jonah was a prophet of God—”
“Prophet?”
“Sorry, Ruby, a prophet is a messenger of God. Someone God uses to communicate a message to the people. Anyway, Jonah decided he didn’t want to deliver the message because it was going to be telling people things they didn’t want to hear. So he was afraid and decided to run away and hide from God—that’s how come he ended up in the stomach of a very big fish.”
“A very big fish . . .” Her smile went up to her eyes.
“Yep. You can’t run away or hide from God. He knows everything and sees everything.”
“And he just might put you in a belly of a fish.” Her tone was more puzzled than sarcastic.
“A very big fish!” Christopher smiled. “Or he might put you into circumstances where you call out to him in your distress like Jonah called out to God from the belly of the fish.”
Ruby was silent and Christopher was annoyed with himself because he talked too much but he sensed a quietening of his spirit. Was God talking to Ruby?
She folded her hands in her lap. “I cried out to Him when I was in the box. I begged him to help me. I suppose we all do that when there are no other choices. He’s our last call for help.”
How stupid. To bring up a subject to trigger such memories. “I’m sorry, Ruby. I didn’t mean to bring back those memories.”
“No, it’s okay, Churchie. Can I call you that?”
“Of course you can.”
“That’s why I came. I still need to sort some things out. I’ve sort of come looking for Father God, not mother nature. That’s how a friend and I put it in one of our deep and meaningful discussions.”
“That’s a great start, recognising Him as your father.”
“That’s good to know. When I was in the ground, I remember asking God for forgiveness. I don’t quite understand that. I suppose because I thought I was about to die and felt I needed to get things right with God. Maybe that was meant to be my Jonah experience.”
Christopher gave an understanding nod.
“Why was I seeking forgiveness, Churchie? I don’t believe I’m a bad person.”
“I believe we all have a yearning for God. In fact, I believe we’re born with that yearning, but your upbringing, the business of the world, the clutter, the marketing machine, Hollywood, they all work to bury it.”
“There we go again, making reference to being buried.” She gave him a gentle punch on the shoulder.
“Oops, sorry,” He raised his eyes to the sky and let out a sigh. “But sadly, that was what it took for your yearning for God to come to the surface.”
“But why did I seek forgiveness? What did I do wrong?”
“You turned your back on God.”
57 – Stained things
A YACHT CAME INTO VIEW with its white sails moving the boat across the still blue water. It looked like an old relic. They both sat there admiring it. Christopher heard Ruby sniffling. He turned and saw her cheeks were wet. She turned and smiled.
“I understand, and I want to run into his arms, and I want to say I’m sorry,” Ruby said.
Christopher knew people needed to hear the truth. The truth did set them free, but he also knew many were afraid to speak the truth. He wasn’t.
“Ruby you can’t run into his arms because at this moment he is unapproachable.”
She gave him a confused and disappointed look.
“He is absolutely holy, and the unholy can’t approach him.”
“But why? It seems strange that God is unapproachable.”
“I think your heart is telling you something. It’s seeking forgiveness. It’s telling you that you’re unholy, a stained and dirty person. That’s what you experienced in those dark moments.” Christopher sensed it was time to back off but there was one last thing. “If we were to teach that everyone gets into heaven, that would mean murderers and the like could walk into God’s presence. There needs to be some kind of standard, some kind of mediator. That’s the key.”
“Wow, this is heavy.” But she wanted more. “But can’t God just forgive? Can’t he be the mediator?”
“Maybe I should stop here. You’re asking complex questions that can only be answered by faith. I tend to get carried away with this discussion, and you’re here to be refreshed.” He smiled, and that refreshing will come from God in his time.
“Okay, let’s talk more about it later. I want to understand but my head is reeling at the moment.”
Back to the sparkling water and white sails. Christopher could just make out a man lying on the front deck of the old relic. Totally relaxed. There was something not far behind the ship—a dark shadow in the water. Ruby confirmed his thinking.
“Look!” Ruby pointed towards the bay. “A whale just surfaced. Wow, that’s some kind of confirmation.”
Thank you, God.
Then her excitement turned to the sky. “What’s that in the sky above the whale? I thought it was a bird but it’s not.”
