How many times have we heard the end of a movie or a book before we saw it? It usually makes us mad because it removes the tension between scenes. Sometimes that’s what we like about entertainment, the anxiety, fear, or a rise in blood pressure that it triggers. Some people think a spoiler alert ruins the story. But when we know the end of our own story, it will allow us to enjoy our lives more.

What if the story is it about a life-threatening health condition? Or the separation from a loved one by death? A drug addiction that started at a young age and now controls? Or living in an abusive situation? What if it is about the release from a job that was supposed to be secure? Wouldn’t you like to know how that story ends as you’re living through it?

No one’s life is perfect. Every life is filled with difficulties. Many people come to church believing that Christians are miraculously saved from all difficulties, when in truth, it’s because of the difficulties we come to know God.

God gave us the end of the story as encouragement. When we go through difficulties, we need to remind ourselves that we know how our story ends. This is what we are saved from; being forever in turmoil, forever anxious, forever fearful — living in a state of continual tension.

In the life of a Christian, knowing the end of our story helps us navigate the challenges as our story unfolds. When we, as believers and followers of Jesus, remind ourselves how our story ends, we will eliminate anxiety during trials. Knowing we live in God’s kingdom both now and forever brings peace.

Can you imagine if you lived forever in uncertainty? What if it never ended? We would feel hopeless. Many do. And that is the message of Christianity. There is a better way to live. To know the end and have peace about it as your story unfolds. In the end, we know Jesus saves us from all of it.

We will go through trials and difficulties, but we have a promise from God when we believe. And that promise is that He never lets us face those trials alone. There are things we learn through those tough times, and they bring us closer to God. We learn to rely on Him. We learn to trust Him, even when we don’t see things going the way we think they should. That’s how our faith and trust grow as we walk through our difficulties.

When we know the end of our story, we react differently than others in our society. We react according to the principles laid out in the Bible. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we enter a new realm. We enter the Kingdom of God where there are different standards. We are no longer slaves to the natural things of this world. Jesus freed us from living that way. And He gave us an eternal promise we would be free from uncertainty in this life and beyond.

That’s good news! Knowing this, we can relax and live our story. Jesus purchased our freedom with his death and we should celebrate with thanksgiving every day we are alive, despite our trials and difficulties. They are only temporary.

Easter is the perfect time to invite someone to hear how their story can end. The story of Jesus’s resurrection is a spoiler alert for sure. He came to life after being murdered, lives in heaven with the Father, and He offers us salvation from turmoil so our story can end well.

THEN we will begin a new story in a new heaven and a new earth.