The basement

I prayed for an older woman to disciple me for three years. When I moved to Orlando I forgot about the whole deal mainly b/c I assumed it was an un-answered prayer. But also because I didn’t know anyone in Orlando, and a new friend like that seemed out of the question. I should’ve known God had other plans. He always does! I met a woman named Kathryn who immediately became my friend. Kathryn and her family go to our church and each Sunday she is standing near my chair at the end of the service before I have time to pick up my purse. She asks the best questions. One night I was asking her marriage questions, and must have seemed a little desperate for some wise advice. So she asked if I would like to meet with her on a monthly basis. And I, of course, said yes. I was totally cool about it at the time, but I think I cried a little on the way home. Anyway, we’ve met twice so far and both times have been AWESOME. Kathryn gave me this word picture that made me cry my eyes out. We were talking about meeting Jesus when we’re in a hard place, taking down our walls and letting ourselves be healed by Him. I told Kathryn that, yeah, that sounded great. But how the heck do you do that? So she said this…

“Imagine a house. It’s broken up into four levels. The first level is the attic. It’s a big, rather empty room, where lots of people can hang out. It’s very casual, kind of like daily life. You see people and they ask how you’re doing and you say, ‘Great, i’m doing great!’.

And then you go downstairs. And the second level is the family room. It’s cozy and you spend more time there than in the attic. You sit and talk with friends on a more intentional level. This floor is like church. When someone asks how you’re doing, you say, ‘Things are hard but i’m doing okay’. And you might elaborate a little.

And then you go downstairs again. Now you’re in the kitchen. This is a very functional space. You spend a lot of time here and it can be a little messy. This level is similar to your christian relationships and intentional fellowship. You share your struggles with others and are very honest with them. There is a lot of communication and openness here. It’s a warm and comfortable place.

And then there are the stairs that lead to the basement. This is the place where your secrets are. This place holds the sin that you don’t share with anyone. When I thought of the basement I was terrified to go down there. It’s a scary place, full of toxic, deadly waste, and if I go down there it’ll kill me and i’ll never come up again. The basement is haunted, there are ghosts and deamons. It’s wicked. 

But when I walk down those stairs, in the basement, I find the most cozy little room, with a fire place, and two big chairs facing the fire. And between the chairs is a coffee table. And on the coffee table is a stack of files. Jesus is sitting in one chair and he’s holding a file. He wants to go over them with me, one by one, and just talk about it. I spent hours in the basement. Sometimes i’d just sit on His lap and let Him hold me. The basement is a wonderful place, a healing place. It may be a little scary to go down there at first, but its where my Savior lives… and it’s in my heart.”

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