Death puts life in the right perspective. Death puts the important things front and center. Death brings celebration of life and more importantly, a longing for the life to come. Death ignites purpose and passion to keep the main thing the main thing.
My Pa’s earthly body fully stopped working a week ago. His earthly life was intricately entwined with God’s purposes and fulfilled in part through my Gan’s wisdom, diligence, persistence, and unwavering devotion for her family. They were a pair.
Both educators, their influence is astounding and overwhelming. But their influence in the lives of coworkers and students cannot be compared to their influence in our immediate family. That’s where influence often begins. Family.
Death does its best to snuff out purpose and legacy while boasting of finality. Death knows we struggle with our mortality. Death knows we can drown in fear and anxiety about our own deaths and the deaths of those we love.
But in Christ, we grieve with hope. We steal back what Death tried to steal. Death failed.
“Jesus rose and sank you to the grave. And in resurrection, I refuse to fear you. O Death you died and I’m alive instead.”
Don’t wait to grab hold of the hope promised in Christ. Death waits for all of us. It is coming. But we need not fear. We need to believe. Believe Christ is who He says He is. Believe He came for you. Loves you. Died for you and took your punishment. Believe in Jesus. Not a list of rules. Not a system. A person. The Son of God.
Christ brings purpose contradicting the empty threats of Death. Christ makes the present matter for the future. Death dies and we live on forever.
“Kill my body you could, but still I live on forever. And when I should breathe no more, louder than I’ll sing. For Death you are the wide door to where I’ll live on forever in the presence of my Savior.”
What would my Pa want you to know? He would want you to know what you see isn’t all there is to this life. He would want you to believe in the One who provided the Way.
O Death, where’s your boast?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IivyjgI026s&feature=share
Sara Burt 
Beautifully said, Sara…thank you for sharing.
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It’s so true in Jesus there is no real death In Jesus Christ our Lord! I lost my mom and my younger brother in the last 3 years. Mom was always saying she was ready to go home to Jesus and all those who had went before. It was along list she was 87 yrs. and had cared for my mentally retarded brother 57 yrs. She only thought of him and who would care for him. She passed on Easter 2016. I became my brothers guardian but my wife and I could not take care of him, I care for my wife she was declining at that time. I tried to have him placed in a christian home but the court decided to place him in a county facility. We pleaded but to no avail. He fell after being there for three weeks.He fractured his spine and had major surgery and was in hospitals for months. After that he was always in a wheelchair and needed a lift to put him in bed. The court let me put him in a christian facility and he did OK for a while but always had problems and kept declining in health and loss of weight. Following many complications I lost my little brother last May. While in special care nursing the last two months he told the nurses he was “ready to meet Jesus” he knew the Lord and had always loved church and everyone he met. I still keep thinking I could have done more,I know I could have. My only consolation is he is with Jesus and mom and dad and all our family in Christ that he loved so much.I still wish I had been able to help him more I love him so much, I ask God to forgive me for being so selfish he is “Much better with the Lord”.. I told him the night he left as I was by his side “we will see you soon” we will be along soon” “we love you” He is no longer in a wheel chair or any pain. He Is With Jesus.
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