On Friendship and Forgivness

SAVE THE DATE! The Marriage of The Lamb
by Samuel Lee Frank on Friday, July 15, 2011 at 8:58pm.

One morning, some time ago, in that moment between sleeping and waking, I found myself standing among a vast crowd of people as far as I could see, from every part of the globe. They were of every age, race, culture, and language. We were all standing outside in a vast open paved place with no trees. The day was beautiful under blue skies and light clouds. Everyone was standing and talking excitedly with friends and family in small groups or couples. It was a joyous reunion and except for the individual groups, we were all strangers and there was no community among the vast crowd as a whole. It was much like a large conference or community event would be. We were all together as a group, but separate in our awareness and interactions. The laughter and talk was light and guarded with furtive glances around to see if we might recognize someone in the crowd. Eye contact was politely avoided.

Suddenly the sunlight was blocked by shadow and every single face turned upward to see a dark object falling from the sky. It plunged downward toward the crowd not far from where I stood. The crowd somehow parted, moving back to leave a large circle of space and the object slammed downward to the brick paving among us. As we all looked at the object we instantly recognized it. It was a lamb. It was matted in blood, dirty, limp and dead. As the creature laid there on the hot pavement, in death, that entire multitude grew suddenly silent. You could have heard a pin drop. Then as one voice, a great keening wail swelled up from every single individual. The noise became a moan of sorrow and broke out into the heart rending cries of mourning in every tongue and culture. Every thought and every eye was directed toward that lamb. Not a single person was distracted from focusing on that small pitiful creature. We sorrowed as one.

Suddenly as the cries reached a fevered pitch, the lamb stirred to life and like a flame rose up from the pavement and grew large as it was transformed into the form of a man. Standing taller than any there, the figure stretched out his arms to show clearly visible, red, jagged scars across his palms. the sight of those scars silenced the crowd instantly as every eye looked on him and every heart recognized him! Then suddenly again, a deafening roar, as praising, shouting, singing broke forth toward Him!

And in that moment of recognition, we all became one. Every ego vanished. Every reference of the past fled away. There was nothing but HIM, and me and YOU! And Oh how we loved HIM! We were one! All memory of past was gone. There was only now, and here, and us, and HIM! It was not an end but a beginning. There was no sense of relief, for there was no knowledge of past. There was only incredible excitement and thrill at the "NOW" that surrounded us as he moved among us and KNEW us and one by one, welcomed us home!

Then I woke up.