A good ending

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10).

I generally prefer a series of books to a single novel. I also prefer TV series over individual movies. In most cases, a stand-alone book or movie does not allow you to really get to know the characters—not like a good series does. It takes time to explore the different facets of a character and the world that person lives in. It takes time to grow close to a fictional character.

Which is why people feel bad when a series ends. Millions of readers are sad that there will be no more adventures for Harry Potter. Others miss having new visits with the Friends who met each week at Central Perk. There was sadness when L. Frank Baum died, because he could no longer take us to Oz. Many were sad to see Mary Tyler Moore and M*A*S*H go off the air; they felt like they were saying goodbye to a group of friends they would never see again. Single novels and one-off movies cannot generate that kind of emotional attachment.

And yet there is a certain satisfaction that comes when a series has ended well. People were very frustrated at the last episode of the Sopranos, because it left things hanging; the same problem plagues series canceled due to low ratings or a series of novels left unfinished because of the author’s death. But the final Harry Potter book left its fans feeling good about the journey they took through the series; when M*A*S*H ended, viewers were glad that the people they had grown to love were getting to go home. When a series ends well, we can feel good about saying goodbye.

So it is when someone dies. Some deaths are tragic—a young person dies and we grieve for potential that was never fulfilled. Some funerals are heavy with regret over paths not taken and opportunities that were missed. But some funerals are a mixture of sadness and satisfaction—sadness because a loved one is gone, satisfaction because they ended life well. A life can end well when it was lived in partnership with Jesus. Many people wander through life with no idea of who they are, what they’re supposed to do, or where they are going. Not so the Christian. Jesus tells us who we are, why we are on earth, and where we’re going when we die. He is the author of life, and when He writes our final chapter, it will be a time where those who gather at our funerals have something to smile about amidst the tears. Jesus fills our lives with love, from the first chapter to the last.