For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. 1 Cor 13:12 (ESV)
Wow, it is really over. My mind still can’t wrap around the fact that this coming Tuesday I will not be anticipating another episode of Lost. Nor will I be looking forward to another season next year. It is all so surreal, or maybe it is the lack of sleep after 2 hours of recaps, 2.5 hours of the final episode, and being tricked into watching Jimmy Kimmel Live from 12am-1am.
I have been alive for almost 40 years now and I can unequivocally say that this was the biggest television finale I have ever wanted to see. They pretty much botched the ending, yet I am still glad I invested so much time, both last night and the last 6 years.
Many of us were looking for answers and the finale gave us very few. What were the numbers about? Why couldn’t women have babies on the Island? What the heck was this show about anyways? None of those, and so many more questions, were wrapped up neatly for us Losties and that is unnerving. But then again isn’t that what the show did to us for 6 years?
For 6 wonderful seasons the Lost writers and producers have kept us on our toes. They showed us that television doesn’t have to be mindless and heartless. They were masters at showing a little bit of what was up their sleeve, if they had anything, and then taking it away – or for the most part turning it on its ear! How many times did I think I had this show wired only to find out I had no idea what was going on? How many times did I think I had a character wired only to find out I am a judgmental pig? In the finale alone I had so many theories I gave up wanting to write them down to show I was right.
In the end, God used this show to teach me a few things.
ALONG FOR THE RIDE
The first thing I learned was that I don’t know everything, nor do I have the capacity to. I heard a saying once that went something like, “God is up to thousands of things at the same time; we only get to see a few of them.” This has been brought to my attention more than once while watching the Lost series. I started with Season 3 after getting completely addicted to the first 2 seasons through Netflix the summer before. I started thinking about what the show could be about, lurked some of the theory websites, and then came up with a few theories of my own.
Sometime around Season 5 I started to realize I wasn’t going to get this show. At first that was quite unnerving, because I can almost always tell you what the ending of most television shows and movies are going to be. That turned to anger and then finally led to admiration for the makers of this wonderful series. Someone had finally gotten to me; someone had broken my record, and for some reason I was fine with it. The last season and a half I have just been along for the ride. People would ask me what I think is going on or if I have any deep Lost truths. I would answer, “Nope, just along for the ride at this point.” And really that has been great!
I feel like that about life lately. I don’t know how anything at all is going to end up, but I know that a Great God knows, and so I am able to go along for the ride. It is really fairly wonderful, and far less stressful than the way I normally go through life. I highly recommend it.
NOT ABOUT ME
In the end, it is not really about me anyway. Not Lost, not life – nothing. It is God’s story; I am along for the ride. Does he care for me and want good things for me? Absolutely. Did the makers of Lost? I don’t know. But it sure was a fun ride, and in the end I was thoroughly, completely, and 100% entertained!
What it all boils down to is: nobody owes me anything. The Lost makers don’t owe me answers to the numbers, and the hatches, and all that. God does not owe me an explanation about everything that is going on in this life. Why people suffer, what is up with a natural disaster, etc. In the book of Job, we see everyone questioning God – from Satan, to Job’s friends, and Job himself. In the end, God doesn’t explain himself. He doesn’t have to – he’s God! And it’s not about me and my need for answers.
Throughout this whole series I just wanted (but down deep I didn’t) the makers of the series to just tell us what the heck is going on, and they never did. In the end, it is their series – their creative process – that they are sharing with us. They don’t have to. That was a great reminder that God doesn’t have to either, but I believe he wants to reveal what is going on, and eventually will to those who he receives into Heaven.
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May 24th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
Excellent article, Patrick. It was, indeed, a great ride!
May 25th, 2010 at 8:24 am
agreed . . the ending, to me, was partly about faith trumping reason . . the “letting go” of always needing concrete answers, definitive proof, certainty . . . whatever happened, happened–that should be good enough for those who have learned to trust . . .
October 31st, 2010 at 10:21 pm
LOST will never be topped by another TV show, ever. Period.
November 1st, 2010 at 5:38 pm
Levi…totally. It’s been almost a year and I still miss it.