We’re happy to present a guest post today by Christian fantasy author MH Elrich, whom you can connect with on Instagram.

“I won’t. Is that what I have to say? Forgive or don’t forgive?”

When Tohru says these words, all of us are devastated. At that moment, we feel like Kyo: ready to accept that we will never be forgiven for our actions. We know that we have made mistakes and believe that we cannot be forgiven for them. We fully expect God to say “I don’t forgive you” just like Kyo fully expects Tohru to say the same. But Tohru, like God, does something completely unexpected.

Tohru forgives and loves Kyo despite what he believes about himself, just like God forgives us despite what we believe about ourselves. Tohru offers grace to Kyo, just like God does: “for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV). Kyo eventually accepts Tohru’s love for him. When that happens, he is transformed.

This is also what happens to Yuki when he encounters Tohru’s love. Tohru helps Yuki become someone better than himself. She helps him become more confident, able to walk into the future unafraid. He acknowledges this change in the final episode.

Only Tohru is able to do this for Yuki. In the same way, only our Savior can change us from the inside out. C.S. Lewis describes it best when he says that a person “would have gone through as big a change as a statue which changed from being a carved stone to being a real man” (Mere Christianity, p. 159). Yuki experienced this—he transformed from being a statue to a person. He was made new because of what Tohru did for him.

If we accept God’s unconditional love, like Yuki and Kyo did from Tohru, we’ll find that we have become a new person. Like it says in 2 Corinthians 5:17a: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (ESV). Our response is then simple.

Yuki’s words echo our own. We, just like the members of the Zodiac, have to tell God how we feel about Him. In that moment, we acknowledge Tohru, who has shown us how much we need a Savior.

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MH Elrich is a Christian Fantasy author, reader, and teacher who wears too many hats. In her spare time, she watches anime and fantasy movies/shows, spends time with her husband, rides horses, and travels to places with lots of trees. Her first novel, Etania’s Worth, is available at most online bookstores. You can find MH Elrich on Instagram, and free content on her website.