What has been promised to us by the Lord is worth the hard work and wait.
Isaiah 38 opens with these words: “In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said to him, ‘Thus says the LORD: Set your house in order, for you shall die, you shall not recover’” (v.1). How many of us will be given the opportunity to prepare for this eventuality? We walk around as if there is no tomorrow saying, “Eat, drink and be merry!” and “You only live once!” Those are words many of us live by. After all, life is just too short to think of something ominous coming.
But What If There Was No Time?
It was customary for Job’s sons to host feasts for each other, including their sisters. When tragedy struck, it “was a day when his sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother's house.” And it wasn’t just a one-night event, for it was also described as “when the days of the feast had run their course…” (Job 1:5). A perfect scene for the “Eat, drink and be merry” slogan!
But then came the heartbreaking news delivered by a servant, who said, “Your sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their oldest brother’s house, and behold, a great wind came across the wilderness and struck the four corners of the house, and it fell upon the young people, and they are dead, and I alone have escaped to tell you” (vv.13, 18-19). The young people weren’t thinking that this would be their last merry-making event or that all of them would share the same death fate. Nor did Job know that whenever he did his burnt offerings on behalf of his children that it would be his last. There was no time for any of them to prepare themselves.
Of course, there is also the difficult pregnancy and, sometimes, death at childbirth. After leaving Bethel and “before [Jacob and his group] came to Ephrath, Rachel began giving birth to her baby. She was having a lot of trouble with this birth. She was in great pain. When her nurse saw this, she said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Rachel. You are giving birth to another son.’ Rachel died while giving birth to the son. Before dying, she named the boy Benoni. But Jacob called him Benjamin” (Genesis 35:16-18). Perhaps there was one last kiss and one last embrace. And the one left behind would have to be reminded of that memory.
There Was Not Time
They were a family of four—the father, the mother and their two teenage sons. On a quick trip to the grocery store one evening, the father and the mother were involved in a head-on collision, instantly killing them. The teenage sons became orphans that night. One of the sons just happened to turn 18 before the accident and became the guardian of his younger sibling, allowing them to stay together and avoiding the foster-care system for the younger one.
Then there was Josh, in his mid-20’s, who didn’t feel well. He went to see the doctor and tests were ordered. His diagnosis: acute leukemia. In a span of three weeks, he was gone. Josh was an only child to Nessa, a single mom. Nessa’s daily postings on Facebook reveal the great pain of losing her child. She shared one from Everyday Kindness that reads, “Behind my smile is a breaking heart. Behind my laugh I’m falling apart. Behind my eyes are tears at night. Behind my body is a soul trying to fight.”
Accidents happen. Undiagnosed terminal illness can cut life short. Death is not picky about demographics. It is an equal opportunist.
Do We Need Convincing?
When you are traveling, it’s good to prepare yourself beforehand. You try to learn about your destination so you are not surprised when you get there. You want to familiarize yourself and determine your expectations. The same is true for our eventual home-going.
I was in a car accident in 2015. Although I didn’t sustain any life-threatening injuries, I suffered from concussion, whiplash, and lower back stress, with years of physical therapy continuing even today for the resulting neck arthritis and mild scoliosis.
But that accident also caused me to evaluate my faith-walk and be more intentional about how I live for Christ. You see, I remembered how I was in total darkness with my own death as my only thought. I couldn’t believe the darkness surrounding me, so I kept saying, “Lord Jesus, I ended up in hell!” Until I heard my husband’s voice break the silence, asking if I was okay and if I could move. Only then did I realize I didn’t die and that I still had a chance to do something, to truly prepare for the prize of eternal life in Christ.
Do you believe in awareness of where you will be in death? This was made clear to us in the story of the rich man and Lazarus. Both men had died. Lazarus, the beggar, was brought by the angels to Abraham’s side while the rich man was taken to Hades, where he was in torture. The rich man “looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire’” (Luke 16:22-24). Add to that what the Word says in Revelation: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (21:3-4). Do you need more convincing?
Privileged to Prepare
I recall a special letter my friend shared with me a few months ago. It was handed to her upon her best friend’s passing. The letter started with these words, “When you open this letter, I am with you by now in spirit. I will miss you, my friend! I am so grateful for you…for being a big part of my story.
“Thank you for making me realize how much Jesus loves me, that even in my ‘sinfulness’ I am still precious in His sight, that I should turn to Him and process all my hurts through the filter of His love, not the tangled pieces of my heart.
“Rejoice with me now, my friend, as truly nothing beats to finally be with our Maker in heaven. Had I not known Christ, I wouldn’t have experienced His unmerited grace that brought me here. Grace wins every time!
“Farewell for now, my friend. I’m not leaving home. I am ‘going home.’ And the best part of it is, those days of hoping to soon be with Jesus [have] finally come now.”
The Apostle Paul reminded the followers of Jesus in Corinth: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). Paul says the same to us. Our preparation may seem tedious and can be routinary, boring and tiring at times, but we must keep going. What has been promised to us by the Lord is worth the hard work and wait. But there is also one thing we must do to receive our eternal inheritance: die! How ironic is it that God allows death to give us life? What grace, what a God!
“When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
“O death, where is your victory?
"O death, where is your sting?” (vv.54-55).
As the letter said, “Those days of hoping to soon be with Jesus has finally come now… I’m not leaving home. I am ‘going home.’”
Photo Credit: ©Unsplash
Luisa Collopy is an author, speaker and a women’s Bible study teacher. She also produces Mula sa Puso (From the Heart) in Tagalog (her heart language), released on FEBC Philippines stations. Luisa loves spending time with her family over meals and karaoke!
