Have you ever wondered if you were allowing the things in your life to get out of perspective? Well, if you ever need a perspective check, try visiting a cemetery.
Today I went to the funeral of a dear old friend, Dr. Curtis. To be honest, I've lived more years of my life without knowing him than I did in acquaintance with him. Yet somehow when God chooses to take someone from you, you suddenly have a whole load of memories flooding your brain and find yourself wishing you could see that person smile again and have just one more conversation with them.
As we followed the hearse along the winding country backroads of Pennsylvania, thoughts of how short life is filled my mind.
Life. A dash between two dates. That's all we get. For Dr. Curtis the dash was between the years 1931-2011.
Dr. Curtis- the man who spoke about Creation in just about every conversation he was involved in, the man who sat with his wife in church, arm around her and whispering in her ear (they were married for 60 years and were seriously the most "in love" older couple I've ever seen), the man who always walked so slowly (due to the stroke he'd had before I'd ever met him), the man who always stopped to say hello whenever he saw me passing by, the man who told the church he'd gone "on a double date with Mike and Chrystal" and then grinned about it, the man who talked about history in a way that left me lost somewhere on the side of the trail, =) the man who was appreciative of those who ministered in the church through music, the man who enjoyed reminiscing about his days in the Navy, the man who congratulated my Dad after Mike and I were engaged by telling him that "Mike is a top guy", the man who sat in church the wednesday before going into the hospital and told the church about Ron Hamilton who had written "Rejoice in the Lord" even though his eye had been removed, etc., etc., etc.
These are some of the things I think about when I think about Dr. Curtis. And you know, looking at the list I realize the things that stand out to me are the things that he did or said that were personal and touched my life. Oh he was a brilliant man (He used to joke about how he had more Degrees than a thermometer!), he accomplished so many things in his life, wrote books, helped engineer planes, etc., etc., etc., but when his life was ended the things that mattered most to the people left behind were the things he'd done on a one-on-one basis.
So the thought hit me today. What am I accomplishing with my life? Not just WHAT am I accomplishing, but WHO am I impacting?
When we were pulling out of the cemetery later I gazed at the huge field of tombstones and made some comment about "All those lives lived...and now they're dead." Mom responded "Yes, and all those people chose how to live their lives too, in one way or another."
I was still thinking about the people. "All those people...they were known by someone, loved by someone, and now they're gone." Life still goes on.
My mind then returned to my moms comment "...all those people chose how to live their lives too, in one way or another." She was right.They'd made choices about what college to attend, what person to marry, what houses to live in, what clothes to wear, what friends to hang out with, what places to go to, what words to say, etc., etc., etc.,
Yet, what about Dr. Curtis' life really mattered when that coffin was placed in the grave?
The choice about Jesus Christ.
He believed that he was a sinner in desperate need of a Savior, chose to place his confidence, joy and trust in Jesus Christ, and allowed that belief to affect the way he lived. That choice has affected where he is today and has determined where he will be for the rest of eternity.
Nothing else in life really mattered.
And suddenly...the tempting things that the world offers as pleasurable and that have often pulled me away from my Lord, seemed so cheap, so unsatisfying and so distasteful in my eyes.
Why?
Because..."God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness." (1 Thess. 4:7) and when I think about the fact that Dr. Curtis, who just last week was here on this earth, is now face to face with His Redeemer, I get a feeling of awe, knowing that one day I too will meet my Savior! What a blessed thought!
And thinking about that thought causes me to think about my perspective on life. (We've come full circle, haven't we?) Are the choices I'm making on a daily basis reflecting my relationship with Christ?
Thinking about Christ and eternity should change our perspective if we've forgotten about what is important in life. Didn't the writer of Hebrews say "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. " (12:2) Wasn't it the fact that Jesus knew of the joy that was to come that gave Him the strength to carry through in a moment when all others would have failed?
We too can have joy as we look forward to an eternity with Christ, and because of what He has done we can "run with patience the race that lies before us" and "lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us".
It changes the way we live our lives people! Not because it's a list of do's and don'ts but because He is worthy and is preparing a place for us, that where He is, there we may be also!
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thess.4)
Anyways, I'm afraid some of these thoughts may seem rather disconnected, but I hope I will remember and learn and grow from what God has reminded me of today. "Only what's done for Christ will last"
"Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in Thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." (Ps 16:11)
