I am finished reading Donald Miller's A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. On page 188, Miller says, "There is no conflict man can endure that will not produce a blessing." I am not so sure. What about Adolf Hitler or Osama bin Laden or Herod from Matthew 2? What blessings came from the conflicts in their lives? I was relieved as anyone else to learn of their deaths, but they are in Hell now. How is that a blessing for them? (Perhaps I am being extreme on this, but other examples would be either too close or unknown to me.)
Chapter 29 is titled "The Reason God Hasn't Fixed You Yet". The difference between stories and reality, Miller explains, is that stories have climaxes, relief of tension, and a "happily-ever-after". Real lives do not have those moments. Miller says that "the reason we like stories so much is because they deliver wish fulfillment" (page 200). As much as I love stories with their climaxes and happy endings, I have to wonder...should we allow ourselves to escape to a reality that we will never know? Christians, if Jesus Christ is our ultimate fulfillment, why do we feel the need to escape to the non-reality of stories, especially if these stories leave us dissatisfied with our own lives? Or are some stories meant to inspire us to pursue a better life in Christ?
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