I have a confession to make.  I’m a Game of Thrones fan.  I was a late bloomer and binge-watched the first five seasons in a couple of weeks so I would be ready for season six’s release.  Please don’t quiz me on the finer details of the show, I’m sure I’d embarrass myself. But I found that once I got past the violence, I really connected with the characters and joined the millions that waited anxiously for the release of each episode.  Waiting for the final season was truly an exercise in patience.  

If you are a fan, I’m guessing you are wondering what I mean by the title of this episode.  We all know it’s over. We watched in horror as kingdoms fell one by one.  Many of our favorite characters died while others somehow survived.  Most of us are still in disbelief in how it ended. 

If you aren’t a fan, you are either wondering how this blog post could possibly apply to you or you are wondering how a nice girl like me could stand to witness such a graphic show hour after hour for eight seasons.  As I stated, I was intrigued by the characters, their motivations for why they did what they did, and the constant fight of good versus evil (and sometimes evil against evil) and the fact that it was sometimes difficult to tell who was on which side.  

Which is exactly what I mean by the title.  The battle of good versus evil continues.  The fight for the throne is ongoing. We all feel the struggle on a continual basis.  What some of you may not know, however, is that the victor has already been declared and the King has already been seated in the throne for eternity.  The only thing left to decide is which side of the battle you will end up on.

Will you enter into the Kingdom of Heaven or will you spend eternity in hell? Will you declare Jesus Christ your victor and King, or will you side with the Devil?  

That sounds harsh I know.  And when I put it that way, it seems like an easy answer, doesn’t it? But the reality is that Satan is tricky.  He lures us into his ways by warping the desires God lays on our hearts into things we desire more than knowing God.  Like our need for power. Or to look good at any cost. Or to protect what is ours regardless of who we might hurt in the process.

My point for bringing it up at all is to remind us that the war is being waged every day.  There are thousands of ways the ruler of this world uses to turn us away from Christ. One of the primary ways being to pit Christians against one another so we all lose.  We compare ourselves to one another.  We judge one another and claim we are somehow better than another because we make decisions that are more suitable for a Christian. Truly, even disagreement over whether a good Christian should even watch such a brutal show as the Game of Thrones can set us apart.

But you see, that isn’t our job.  Only God gets to judge.  We are all charged to be the best we can be. And strive to be better each day.  I know I fall short of God’s glory.  I know I am a sinner and can only do what is right by the power of the Holy Spirit that lives within me. Somedays I do better at living in God’s will than other days. But I know I can keep coming back and I know that he will keep giving me another chance to get it right by asking for forgiveness and then trying again.

And I know that Jesus died for my sins so I don’t need to beat myself up for being less than perfect. I don’t have to judge myself or anyone else. I just keep my eyes on the King.  My King. The one who sits at the right hand of God.  The one and only true Hand.  

So, before you decide whether I was right or wrong for watching a series full of evil, think about the evil all around in our day to day lives and see if it isn’t just as dark. Satan would love nothing better than to trick us all into believing that these things we have come to allow, and sometimes even embrace, in this world are not just ok, but are to be exalted.  The lines distinguishing good from evil have gotten very blurry, haven’t they? It can be very confusing.  

Satan wants us to believe that scripture is no longer relevant in this world. That we don’t need to worry about sex outside of marriage, pride, envy, homosexuality, or abortion and that the standards have changed. A little white lie here, taking something that isn’t ours there, or a little gossip is harmless, right?  His ploy to make us believe that the Bible is just a book of stories and that it isn’t to be taken literally in today’s world is one of Satan’s biggest triumphs.  

Our time here on this earth is limited.  We only get so many days to fulfill our purpose. I believe that instead of judging one another for the decisions we make in our short time here, we should be loving one another.  I believe the best way we can do that is to invite people to seek the Truth. To accept Jesus into their hearts. Read God’s Word and pray about what we can do to shine His light into this world full of very dark places. To begin to live in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

The producers of the Game of Thrones series did an amazing job of highlighting the effects of evil in this world. Regardless of your position on whether it is worthy of our time to watch, I think it has provided a wonderful opportunity to contemplate and share about the battle between good and evil.  By dying on the cross and ascending into heaven, Christ has been declared the victor. Make no mistake, his triumphant return will be a sight to behold.  I just pray that you are on the right side of the battlefield. 

Think about it, what would it be like if every person devoted the same amount of time sharing about Jesus and what he did and does every day as they did about that one television series? Can you imagine the outcome of that simple investment of time? And what if everyone realized that God’s power trumps that of the Night King, the dragons, and all of the rulers in the show combined? And what if, in that knowing, everyone took even a fraction of the effort they have in convincing others to watch Game of Thrones and instead convinced them to open their Bible? The effects would be astounding. 

But we don’t, do we? I mean, what would people think? They might assume you’ve become holier than thou. Or that you’re suddenly better than them or beneath them. Or that you’ve lost your senses.  I mean, who could possibly believe all that fantasy stuff anyway? What? Wait? Fantasy?  We’ve all spent hundreds of hours obsessing over a show that is described as an American fantasy drama based on a series of fantasy novels.  We talked about it like it was real and about the characters like they were our friends.

But guess what? The Bible IS real. And all of those characters that you’ve heard or read stories about were real, living, breathing people.  Sinners just like us. But they had faith and they believed in something they couldn’t see. And they overcame adversity in ways we can’t imagine. 

And we can too. I challenge you to commit to learning as much about the scriptures and the teachings within as you have watching, reading, and talking about this epic series. Visit with your friends about what you learn, set aside time for devotions and prayer, and see what will unfold in your life.  You will be amazed. And guess what? You won’t have to wait eight years to know the end, because we already know that Christ has already won the war.  And he reigns today and will throughout all eternity. Now that is an ending worthy of our attention. 

If you’ve stayed with me this far, I want to thank you. I know this episode was a bit edgier than most. But the reality is, life isn’t all butterflies and roses.  It is difficult and there are some really evil places in this world.  Together we can shed some light into those corners. 

Are you with me? Awesome!  Please share this post or the corresponding podcast with someone you think might need this message.  If I’ve left you with more questions than answers, let’s talk and I’ll do my best to answer your questions and possibly even help you find your path to the kingdom that has no end.  

Thank you for stopping by today.  I appreciate you spending your time with me.  God has an amazing life planned for you.  He is calling you to so much more than what most of us settle for. So stop living in boredom and overwhelm waiting for the next epic series to help you numb out.  Instead, have the courage to step into that life your soul is longing for. One of fulfillment and peace. Go, have an amazing day, and live your More!