Sometimes it’s hard to look at things in a positive light. It’s even harder when that particular thing is death.
This week, I’ve had the privilege and honor to post the obituaries for the county on our news site. Some of these folks have lived extraordinary lives, and others have just simply lived to love. Some have been tucked away in nursing homes and forgotten, while others passed surrounded by family and friends who cherished them.
But there are two things they all have in common. No one grave will be dug any deeper than the other, and none of the individuals will take their worldly possessions with them.
Too often we find ourselves too busy to look at the life we are leading. We miss the important profound moments where we can make an impact. We put too much emphasis on material possessions, and not enough emphasis on matters of the heart.
I read a poem recently about a woman who upon taking a long glance at her teenage daughter, wonders if she gave her child enough love or enough knowledge to survive on her own. She ponders about her daughter’s well-being and the life she will lead as an adult. She trusts that her child will walk in faith.
Do you walk in faith?
We hear about break-ins and robberies all the time. Such things can bring devastation when something is stolen from us. These items can be expensive and hard to come by. These things can take months of savings to gain, and stolen in a second by someone of ill intent. Over time, they can be replaced in the same way they were earned from the beginning.
Can you be replaced?
Some folks are dealt a bad hand as a child. Their parents die and leave them behind when they’re just a few years old. They bounce around from foster home to foster home until suddenly someone cares enough to keep them. That foster mom and dad nurture and raise that child to be someone. They help them graduate from high school and then college, and then that child becomes an advocate for other kids that grew up just like him. He makes an impact on the world. He will leave behind a legacy when he goes.
Will you?
A faithful preacher builds his church and leads his congregation to God. He is at his post every Sunday morning and every Wednesday night. He runs to the bedside of the sick, raises money for the poor, and feeds the homeless. He opens his pockets and heart to those in need. He knows that God will provide.
Do you?
The only positive thing in death is the life you lead while you were here. Love enough, live enough, and give enough so in the end it was enough. ‘Tomorrow is not promised’ is a phrase that is not spoken near as often as it should be, and it’s all about what you leave behind when you’re gone.
Matthew 25:23
His Lord said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.”
