In the heart wrenching season 4B premiere of The Walking Dead, we finally meet the mysterious Michonne.

Her story might just save your life.

I by ‘meet’ I mean the real Michonne, the suppressed soul stuffed in a closet by the ice-cold samurai.

When Michonne first appeared in the series, rescuing a helpless Andrea, I thought she seemed too iconic, like an unreal author insertion from another storyline. Until halfway through the recent episode, ‘After,’ that is.

michonne-after

(SPOILER ALERT)

After the Governor blows the prison wide open, our familiar ‘family’ of characters is gutted and forced to scatter in all directions. Michonne finds herself alone on the road again, and she quickly slips back into old habits and strategies: commandeering a pair of walkers to mask her presence. Blending in brilliantly, seamlessly.

At first, she leads her ghastly bodyguards through the woods. But then, slowly, almost imperceptibly, they begin to lead her. Before long she finds herself shuffling along mindlessly with a growing hoard of zombies. Crossing the pathway Rick and Carl had just travelled, she opts to go with the walkers instead.

And why not? She’s exhausted, too tired to fight. Besides, she’s not in any immediate danger. She fits right in. And she’s given up caring.

Until a decaying woman that looks eerily like her shuffles past. Michonne turns to face the walker, a zombie staggering before her like some horrific mirror image that will not fudge the truth: If I keep this up, I will become her. 

Snap.

In that moment, confronted by the poverty of her own soul, Michonne realizes the truth: she would rather die fighting than live dying. She cuts down the hoarde of zombies, retraces her steps back to Rick and Carl’s footpath, and follows the trail until she finds the two holed up in an abandoned home.

Peering through the sheer drapes at her old friends, Michonne weeps tears of joy. Tears like we haven’t seen fall from her stone face before. And then she knocks on the door.

Welcome back to the land of the living, Michonne.

So here’s the thing

Maybe Michonne’s story is your story. Maybe you’re tired of fighting, tired of trying, tired of caring. Maybe you’re tempted to give up, to give in, to fit in, to let yourself die inside instead of climbing yet another mountain.

But maybe there’s a voice inside you saying, “Don’t do it. Don’t give up. Don’t give in. Don’t settle for fitting in. Stop living like a zombie. Stand against the darkness. Get used to choosing life, today and tomorrow and every day after that.”

That voice, friend, is Jesus Christ. He’s got your number, and he’s saying, “I know you’re tired. Let me give you wholeness, healing, purpose, power, victory, a family, and a future. Choose life by choosing me. Let me show you how to live!”

What about you? Can you relate to Michonne’s story? Comment below.