THE ENCOUNTER

III

A/N
All the word texts that ends with a bible citations are not the same words in the Bible,they have been modified. The Bible citations acts as a Bible reference for those word texts, pointing where they  were taken from. (I used the New International version)

             But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

      
                      III
      I wandered down a narrow path that twisted its way up a hill like a busy snake. It was bordered by low thorn bushes and surrounded by a wasteland. The wasteland was spotted with human skull and a bunch of skeletons that laid partly buried. Vultures roamed the sky above it, seeking for a meal to satiate their hunger. There was neither the light of the sun nor that of the moon. Rather, the heavens were grey and the weather eerily dull.

           I climbed up the hill panting, pondering where I was. Halfway through the journey,I stopped for a rest. I wiped my brows from unwelcomed perspiration with the back of my hands and looked up again, I
beheld the dark sky. My eyes skimmed the isolated wasteland with much curiosity and a group of unanswered questions ran through my head. I turned again toward my destination after failing to gather useful information with my eyes, and continued climbing.

        When I halted at the summit, I saw a disturbing sight. A cross stood out boldly, a man was nailed to it. He was bath in his own blood and his face was void of joy. He groaned in pain and cried in agony. He was embalmed in wounds and deep cuts, like fractures on the Earth's crust. He wore a woven thorn crown that dug into his head, drawing out blood.I looked closely and my mind travelled far back to Bible lessons I had receive as a kid in the Sunday School. The man was Jesus Christ, we had been told that he was the son of God. The son of God who bore the sins of humanity on himself and was nailed to the cross. His suffering had been described to us on several occasions, yet none matched the sight that stood before my eyes; He leaked of blood from his open wounds.

         His shouts of pain tore through me like a double edge sword and pierced my soul. I was suddenly overcame by guilt, It burned my chest like hot coal. I turned my gaze away, to escaped the dreary sight and the heavy emotions that infiltrated my being. The guilt gnawed at my heart. His pain was real, it was so horrifying that it shattered my heart into many pieces, like a vase dropped from great heights. I felt hurt and my soul melted at the sound of his cries.Overwhelmed,I fell to my knees, my head down and wept.

           Next, I heard screams echoing and the sound of heavy lashes filled the air. I looked up, and saw Jesus being flogged with a lead-tipped whip over and over by strong arms, for a crime he knew nothing about. His heart was pure and his innocence known. He did no wrong yet stood punished. I rushed to the scene, tried to put and end to the brutality, to stop his offenders, to make them see reason, but like oxygen, I was unseen and consequently unheard. I fell once more to my knees and wept with each stroke that met his skin with a bitter touch. His suffering was frightening, it left the heart broken. A deep conviction sprouted in my heart, and I knew that it was for me that he suffered so much. He bore my sins without complaining, without grumbling or fighting in his own defence. I had never seen so much love, not anywhere on the earth. For God to give up his only son, who lovingly gave up his life for me. To bear my shame, my pain, and the punishment I deserved. I wept and wept until I awoke with a cry of pain ringing in my ear.

             I sat on my bed, leaning on the wall and brought my knees to my chest. My heart was as heavy as a rock and my being in despair. My systems were flooded with an overwhelming emotions of guilt and sadness. I sobbed into my palms and sniffed like a child. I twisted my face and muffled my screams with my hands. I settled my chin on my knee and then I heard my name. My eyes raked the room in a swift motion and not even a living shadow did I see.