Mercy

‘Tis the Season for a Mission of Mercy

I’m a Christian. By that I mean I follow Jesus Christ and have submitted to His Lordship. I’m far from a perfect person - so I’ve placed my hope of eternity in the Perfect One, who has offered me His gift of life and peace. It’s all on Him.

And it’s a natural thing that my heart, the values I hold dear, emerge in the things I write.

Now, the “Dax Zander: Sea Patrol” books are not overtly “Christian.” I have friends who hold no particular faith, who consider the stories “humanistic” or aspirational. I wouldn’t disagree - I would simply suggest that the best manifestation of humanity is one modeled after the Judaeo-Christian teachings in the Bible. I don’t believe in attainment of Utopia, but I do believe with effort, fallible humans can do better. And history supports that idea.

And because I want to help communicate some of these great themes - forgiveness, kindness, love, and more, they will integrate into the stories about Dax and his companions. Nothing new here - some of our greatest titles in Literature, written by much greater writers than I will ever become, embody similar themes.

But one aspect in the stories, to me, resonates so much, it always brings me to tears. In Book 2 (SPOILER! Quit reading if you haven’t gone through DAX ZANDER AND THE OGRIBOD ASSAULT!) … Little Kai Zander, only 8 years old, shows kindness and mercy upon a creature that could kill him. A creature he’s been warned about explicitly. But little Kai, he’s a soul less affected by the norms adults fall into. He sees a wounded creature and his first instinct is to HELP. And while this act does come with a whole series of complications and dangers, ultimately Kai’s act of mercy will have consequences that disrupt an entire civilization. I don’t want to say more than that, but the eventual fruit borne of Kai’s mercy is sweet. Very sweet.

It’ll be a while before you get to read how exactly that all works out, but I promise you, when it hits, you’ll probably shed a few tears, just like I do every time these moments play out in my head. I mean, every time.

My conclusion - maybe humanity would be well served if we showed more mercy to those truly in need. I know I’m grateful beyond words for the mercy Jesus Christ has shown to my imperfect soul. 

And if you’re curious about that mercy, about Christ - please send me a note. I’d love to share what He means to me. 

Noah Knox Marshall