Rooms - James L. Rubart [76]
“He took care of us after mom died. We always had a roof over our heads and food on the table, and he even bought me things I didn’t need.”
“What did you need to hear?”
“He was always home from work by 5:30; he bought me decent clothes; he—”
“What did you need to hear?”
As Micah tried forming the words, a surprising emotion arose: anger. Unbidden. Unexpected. And unstoppable. “I hate him! He destroyed me. He abandoned me! Why was it so impossible for my dad to love me after she died? Even for a moment? Couldn’t he care about me at all? Would it have killed him to say ‘nice car’? I won state in the eight hundred meters! I beat everybody. But it wasn’t good enough. Listening to him you’d think I’d been tearing the livers out of neighborhood dogs.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “Why couldn’t he have loved me just a little?”
“Your success will never answer the question.”
“I just wanted him to say, ‘I’m proud.’ That I have what it takes to be a man.”
“You’ve numbed the pain with TV shows and movies that scintillate and tease, but they’re cotton candy. You’ve hidden your shattered heart behind money and fame.”
The tears kept coming.
“Your heart broke again and again, and you tried to fix the pieces with the salves of the world. But they can only dull the pain; they cannot heal. You have been chained. You’ve hidden your heart in the dark places. But I came to heal the brokenhearted and set the captives free.”
“I’m not worthy of You.”
“That’s a lie from the enemy of your soul.” The Lord smiled. “You are more than a conqueror, and you are worthy because I am inside you. It is time to believe it. I am proud of you, Micah. I am proud.”
The words sank into his heart and grew like seeds shown in time-lapse photography, growing so fast he wondered if he could contain the emotions pushing to burst out. He was a son of God, adopted into His family, Kingdom, and glory. Loved. And forgiven. For all time, all eternity. Astonishing.
The Lord held him tighter. “The treasure of My Kingdom are the hearts of the ones who are Mine. Let it sink in to the innermost parts. Listen. Your heart is the treasure of My Kingdom. And I have done everything to set it free. And I love you with an unfathomable, unquenchable love.”
“Now, it is time to let go of your anger toward your father.” The Lord swung around till He knelt in front of Micah and held out His hands.
“I can’t.”
“You can. You must choose.”
“No.”
“Time to let go of your anger.”
Micah rose to his knees.
“Time to forgive.”
Micah reached out and placed his palms in the Lord’s and opened his heart to the fire that swept through him.
When it was finished, the Lord said, “Now come.”
Micah slowed as they approached the DVD room.
“You have a question?” the Lord said.
“What about the DVDs?”
“Ah yes. Let’s take a look, shall we?”
As he stepped through, Micah stared in amazement. All except seven DVDs were gone. The Lord walked over to the shelf and pulled one off, tossing it to Micah. “That’s a good one.”
Time slowed down and the DVD floated toward him. Braveheart. Micah looked up at the Lord, but He was gone. Micah looked at the DVD again, and it dissolved along with the room.
He woke with a start. His eyes flew open and looked out the window. Daybreak. The dream!
He rolled out of bed and caught his foot on the covers. Yanking his leg free, he dashed toward the hallway from last night. The door was still there. Still shut. But it had changed. The Hebrew inscription was translated.
I will go before you and make the rough places smooth;
I will shatter the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars.
I will give you the treasures of darkness
And hidden wealth of secret places,
So that you may know that it is I,
The LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.
(Isaiah 45:2–3)
Micah lifted two fingers to the door and pushed. It glided open without sound. He walked straight for the door at the back of the room. It was gone, no evidence the door or the room behind it had ever been. Movie posters