A time to be born and a
time to die...
Ecclesiastes 3:2
"It's
a boy!" Shouts of joy fill the delivery room. When a new life enters the
world, we instinctively rejoice because life is worth celebrating. We send out
birth announcements and tie pink or blue balloons on our mailboxes. Moms talk
for months about names, nursery colors, and diaper choices. Dads start browsing
little league equipment and worrying about college costs. Each parent secretly
dreams that this son or daughter might play major league baseball or become
President. Anticipation builds as the due date approaches and no one fears discussing
it. But we don't do that with death.
At
the mention of death, the room goes still. Awkward silence holds everyone
captive. We treat it as a swear word, lowering our voices and our eyes as
though the very mention of it is obscene. Yet, the Bible says that death has
its season just as much
as
birth does. As we thoughtfully prepare for the birth of a child, so should we thoughtfully
prepare for death. We do that by being mindful of the way we live during this
season of life.
Jesus called it storing up “treasure in heaven” (Matt. 6:19-20). When He is Lord of our
lives, death is merely the entrance into His presence (1 Cor. 15:55), a simple change of address.
If we have lived for Him during this season, then we have been preparing for
the next. Every kind word, selfless deed, monetary sacrifice, or soul won to
Christ is a treasure for which God desires to reward His children. By obeying
Him here, we are sending treasure on ahead where it is waiting for us. We
understand that we should prepare for every season of life—death is no
exception.
We write our own funerals
by the way we live our lives. Do you like the epitaph that your life is writing?
.
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