Habitual Furniture

As Lauren and I approach our 44th anniversary, we’ve noticed a tendency in us and our adult children to laugh and cry about the same stories of our lives together over and over and over again. Say, “every man for himself” or, “Steve, get home quick” and you’ll get an immediate and emotional response. They’re crucial parts of our bigger story and telling them is what C. S. Lewis compellingly phrased, “a part of the habitual furniture of our minds”.

In this week’s Gospel reading, Jesus says, “The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe the gospel” But what precisely is “the gospel”? What might immediately come to mind for us, the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension, were still future events.

I believe Jesus was pointing to the “bigger” story of God in the world—of which the crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension are crucial parts. It’s a story that begins in Genesis 1 and concludes in Revelation 22. A “four-chapter” story that tells not just of human fallenness and forgiveness, but of God’s original intention and ultimate restoration of all his good and beloved creation.

It’s a story of such profound and comprehensive good news that it, too, must become a part of the habitual furniture of our minds.