Short Stories

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Once upon a time there was a man named Christian. He lived in the world, as most people do. The world was a very hard place for him to live in, and he didn’t like it very much.

He met a lot of people who treated him badly, betrayed him, and hurt him. Every time they did, he noticed a scar appear on his face, arm, or back. It seemed that most of the people he met gave him a scar – or several.

Christian also noticed that sometimes things happened to him which weren’t anybody’s fault, but were still disappointing. His bike got flat tires, his pet turtle died, and eventually his mother got very sick and lost her hair. Every time something disappointing happened, Christian found that it got a little harder for him to smile.

Because the world hurt him so much, he started making bad habits in order to deal with the pain. Sometimes he would say mean things to people just to make himself feel better. Other times he would hit people who treated him badly, because he liked the way it felt when people were afraid of him. Christian didn’t like the person he was becoming, but it was the only way he could think of to deal with the world and all the pain that was in it. Every time he did something he shouldn’t have done, he noticed a small weight attach itself to his arms or legs. Over time he could barely walk because there was so much weighing him down.

But Christian still liked to walk, so he wandered far and wide all over the world. Finally, he traveled to a place so far away he didn’t recognize it. He saw a sign in the ground that said “The Kingdom of God,” and there was a man standing beside it.

“Hello,” Christian said to the man.

“Hello,” the man said. “My name is Jesus.” He was tall and strong, but looked very gentle.

“What kind of place is this kingdom of heaven?” Christian asked, trying to peek around the man for a better look. “I’ve never heard of it before.”

“It’s a different place to live,” Jesus told him. “There is a king here – a good king, and his name is God. He likes you and wants to meet you.”

So Christian went into the kingdom of heaven, and Jesus came with him. “Don’t you have to wait behind for the other people who come into the kingdom?” Christian asked him.

“Oh, I’ll walk with them too, just like I’m walking with you.”

Christian didn’t understand that, but he was happy to be in the kingdom of heaven with Jesus.

They walked for a little while, across grassy fields and through beautiful sunlit forests. As they were wandering by the banks of a stream, Christian noticed something very strange. “The weights on my legs…they’re not as heavy anymore,” he told Jesus.

“Those are from the world,” Jesus answered. “God doesn’t want them here in the kingdom of heaven, so he’s taking them away from you.”

“But those are my weights! I earned them for all the bad things I did! I should have to keep carrying them.”

“God doesn’t want you to carry them any more,” Jesus said, patting Christian on the back.

They walked a little longer, past a gentle river and over rolling green hills, until Christian looked at his arms. “Hey! My scars from the painful things that people did to me…my scars are going away!”

“Pain is part of the world,” Jesus told him. “God wants to heal those scars you’re carrying. There’s no room for that pain in the kingdom of heaven.”

“But I’ve carried them for so long,” Christian argued.

“God doesn’t want you to carry them any more,” Jesus said.

They walked for a little longer, through stands of pine trees and toward the setting sun. Christian’s arms and legs kept getting lighter and lighter, and all the scars on his body kept getting smaller. Then Jesus told a story that made Christian smile.

“Hey!” Christian shouted. “I can smile! I haven’t smiled in a long time because I’ve been so disappointed at the things that happened to me!”

“Disappointment is part of the world,” Jesus answered. “God doesn’t want it in the kingdom of heaven. There’s no room for it here.”

“But I don’t understand,” Christian said. “Those things are who I am! If you take them away, what will happen to me?”

“Let the King handle that,” Jesus answered.

They walked a little longer, by the shores of a lake so big Christian couldn’t see the other side. The evening was so beautiful, the sky cloudless and the sun bright, that Christian couldn’t contain himself. He leaped and danced around on the grass, laughing and singing and shouting to Jesus about how great he felt.

“God is changing you,” Jesus smiled. “He took away all your pain, disappointment, and the bad things you’ve done. He’s making you into a completely new person!”

“I feel like a completely new person!” Christian shouted.

Then he looked behind him, at how far he had come since entering the kingdom of heaven. As far as he could see, there was a trail on the ground. There were weights that had fallen off his legs and bandages that he had taken off his scars. Off over the horizon they stretched: those things that weren’t a part of him anymore.

“So this is what the kingdom of heaven is all about!” Christian said.

“That’s the way God wants it,” Jesus agreed. “Come on, let’s keep walking. It will take a long, long time, but some day you can meet the king face to face to thank him for everything he did for you.”

“I can’t wait!” Christian replied, jumping for joy. And so they walked together off over the horizon.

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