Not Without Hope

I just finished reading the book "Interview With a Vampire" by Anne Rice. I never would've picked up the book, but my sister was reading it and loved it - so I thought I'd give it a shot. The story and writing is fascinating. But what really struck me was how much I identified with the main characters, two vampires named Lestat and Louis. In Anne Rice's stories, vampires are able to see, hear, taste, feel life more fully than humans.

Lestat was a vampire who seemed very beautiful to Louis at first. But soon he discovered that Lestat had no appreciation for beauty, but instead devoured with an insatiable appetite. Lestat, in a sense, wanted to experience everything. But in trying to experience everything, he missed out on the actual experience - being too busy yearning for the next thing. Louis, meanwhile, was struck by how much he noticed in the world as a vampire. He could sit for hours studying the flame of a candle and be struck by its mesmerizing beauty. He also saw the ugliness of a vampire's existence and was disgusted by it. He struggled with the meaning of it all, wondering again and again why God ever created vampires.

I can see in myself aspects of both characters. As regards Lestat, I find myself always yearing to experience it all; but at the same time missing the beauty of the experience I'm in. And as for Louis, I see life stretching before me and it seems ugly and pointless.

I've been learning things about God. And one of the things I'm certain of is that God is complete. When He says in Ezekiel 43:9, "Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the lifeless idols of their kings, and I will live among them forever", that means a whole lot. "Lifeless idols" is absolutely true, because outside of God everything in this world is lifeless. Within God, our lives are complete, full and utterly beautiful. What this means for me is that my life is not meaningless. In complete fellowship with God, my life is complete and my experiences are beautiful and should be treasured. There is a reason for my existence and it is not without hope.