"A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth. It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart." (Ecclesiastes 7:1, 2)
Today I buried a brother. Well, actually it was his memorial service, but the effect was the same. Although we only met a couple of years ago, we were immediately bonded together. We were both veterans. We were both believers in Christ. And we belonged to a couple of civic organizations together. While he was only three or four years older than me, he was infinitely more of a man than I could ever hope to achieve. The blend of attendees only added to the story of how many people he touched in his lifetime.
The service was L-O-N-G, but it was very well done. It represented the many sides of my brother, yet there was so much more that was left unsaid. Members of different organizations with which he had been associated spoke, others whom he had mentored rose to speak, lastly his family spoke. It was very emotional at times, mixed with spurts of humor, as anecdotes and stories were told. All too soon, however, the service was over.
I say all too soon, because how do you tell someone's life story in an hour or two? How can you relate all the good times, the memorable moments, the struggles, defeats, and victories? A lifetime of sixty-plus years can only be abridged to tell the Reader's Digest version - hitting some of the highlights along the way. Many of us had memories to share and stories to tell, but they will remain our secret, our private memories to keep him alive in our individual hearts.
Solomon writes in our passage that it is better to go to the house of mourning, for there we will consider our mortality. There, in the quiet of those few minutes, we will have clarity - put it all into perspective. In the house of mirth, of laughter, of partying we forget - if only for a while - the problems that await us outside. We can lose the inner talk in the noise of music, talking, and laughter. Only for a little while.
Obviously God doesn't want us to mope around thinking about our impending death or hang out at the local funeral home as a professional mourner. That isn't the point. Most people, though, don't stop to consider from time-to-time that this world is ever-changing and our days on it are truly numbered. I remember being in high school and college and thinking that thirty years old was ANCIENT! When I was in my twenties and thirties in the Army, I was convinced that I was invincible. I even kept that cocky attitude for another decade or two afterward. But now here I sit in my sixties and I have begun to realize that life starts out slow but gains speed as I grow older. I have had enough broken bones, hospital visits, heart scares, and other things to know that this man of steel is mainly just a flesh bag of bones and air. Days like today remind me just how fragile the thread of life truly is.
My question to you, my friend, is simply: Do you realize just how close every one of us is to eternity? We are all only one heartbeat away from forever. We are one breath away from stepping into the afterlife. Think about this, if your body temperature rises just a mere six or seven degrees and stays there, you are gone. It takes less than two minutes to bleed totally dry if the right place is cut. Our lives are (as Solomon quoted earlier in this same book) merely a whisp of smoke, then they are gone.
Are you ready? The Bible is very clear about the entry requirements for heaven and it clearly spells out who will go to hell. Also, it is entirely our choice. God cleared the way through His Son, Jesus. We have to make the choice. There are consequences. There are no participation medals in heaven. Meditate on this and choose life in Christ.
Be blessed.
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