On Sunday, January 7, 2007 we had memorial service for a pillar in our church named Jessie Clark. Her 94 years were recounted with joy, appreciation, and glory unto the Lord. When Kathie and I had returned home I noticed my cell phone had a voicemail on it, which I retrieved.
It was terrible news.
The message was from a friend of mine in our church, “Hello Joel, we were on our way to church this morning and there was an accident. We were coming around a corner and were hit head on by a motorcycle. Our SUV was totaled, but were okay. The two young riders did not survive.” Of course I immediately returned the phone call and found out more details about this tragic event.
The next day was Jessie’s graveside service. As I stood with her family and friends at the cemetery, something began to work in my heart. There came the realization to me how vulnerable we are. In the normal routine of driving to church, my friends came close to ending up in the cemetery themselves.
Comparing Jessie’s 94 years of living, with the relatively few years of the couple who were killed on the motorcycle, there would seem to be a big difference. But in the face of eternity there is almost no difference.
These events made real to me how important it is that we are ready for death. We don’t know what, nor who, is around the next corner of life. In the blink of an eye we could be standing before God. This is why the Psalmist reminds us…
“So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. ” (Ps 90:12)
Death could happen at any moment, but we do not have to live in fear or dread of it. In fact, for the person who knows Jesus Christ there is cause for great anticipation. The promise for us is that in a seamless transition, we will be with the Lord…forever!
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