The late afternoon sky was turning cowboy-painting shades of blue and pink as the mourners gathered at the small cemetery. To an outsider the graveside ceremony would have seemed like any other, with family and friends huddled together to pay their last respects. But this was different. Inside the simple, wooden casket, life was coursing, all red and warm. Moments before, the 37 year old father of two had read his own will for all to hear, and now lay listening to eulogies. He had specifically requested honesty, deep and clear, from every friend who wanted to call his life to remembrance. The mock funeral idea had seemed like a novelty, something that would hopefully put his stressful life into the perspective that most people only gain near the end. But this…this was an emotional defibrillator dialled to 360. Through the salty waves of revelation he whispered, “God, I see now”.
Radical? Probably. Morbid? Not at all. One hundred years from now we would all have been laid to rest. So would pretty much everyone we know. The celebrities who dominate your screen, the presidents who lead the mightiest nations on the planet. Your family, friends and children. Will anyone care where you lived, what you drove or what you wore? When all is said and done, what will really matter?
First, let me apologise. I’ve set you up. This post is not about making every moment count. It is not about satisfying work, stimulating relationships, strong family units, good balance between activities, rest and pastimes. The answer that The One gave is not found in any of the self-help books that dot my shelf.
He said : “If you want to save your life, you’ll lose it. You need to die before you can truly live“. Not hold your breath till the tough times pass. Not “build some character”. Die.
Do you feel uncomfortable right now? Then you are probably getting my point.
If you want to continue holding your personal happiness in tension with what you think God wants you to do, you’ll be miserable. In the end it will lead you nowhere. We should not be skulking around the frail care unit, trying to get better or look prettier. New life is found in the birth ward.
Likewise, this kind of death is not an ending, but a glorious beginning. A seed that tumbles into the rich earth has to shed its life before it is enveloped by true purpose. It is a revealing of who you really are. A celebration. Embracing the treasure. Buying the field. Finding the pearl.
You have been called to live life to the hilt. And that begins with surrender. To hold in upturned palms every right and assumed entitlement. Jesus does not want your stuff, your time or even your service. He wants you.
This is the simple truth which has never been found wanting by anyone who has chosen The Way. And it carries more joy, peace, love and fulfilment than you could ever contain.
Glory to Him
WS
Thanks for that timely message!