Tuesday, May 31, 2016

The End And The Beginning

Death and dying.  There I said it.

There are two things in this life that everyone experiences and that is birth and death.

Birth is life.  Death is the termination of life-at least on the physical level.

Death is scary.  It is the unknown.  No one (except Christ and a few individuals chosen by Christ) have ever come back from death.

I'm writing this rather morbid commentary because I just found out a dear friend of mind is now in hospice in the last stages of cancer.  It doesn't look good.

As I've grown older and am now in my early 60s, I've come to realize that the majority of my life is over.  I've watched family and friends grow old, and some suffer poor health and become sedentary.

It's an uncomfortable feeling to watch oneself and others you care for succumb to the ravages of time and life.

And yet, it is also fascinating journey as you experience the years taking their toll on both body and mind.

People change, objects rust and decay and places so familiar when you were young have transformed into destinations unfamiliar.

Life is about change.  Death is but another phase of that change.

Death is inevitable.  We have no choice as to when and how we die.  Death is no respecter of age or gender. 

However, we do have a choice in how we spend our lives and where we will spend eternity once our mortal shells cease to function.

As a Christian I have great hope in life after death.  There's nothing mysterious or complicated about it.

We all have a choice.  Accept the free gift of salvation from our Savior Jesus Christ or reject it.

Spend eternity in Heaven with him or in the devil's Hell without him.

Your choice.  Admit that you are a sinner, repent and ask Christ to save you or reject his offer and suffer the consequences.

Heaven or Hell as a destination is not based on good works.  In the Bible it states that salvation is not by works, lest any man should boast.  It's a free gift and who doesn't like a free gift?

It's not about going to church, obeying the ten commandments (although as a Christian I want to please the Lord by my actions and life), how much money you give to the poor or a thousand other good deeds.

It's about faith and trusting God that he will do what he say's he will do.  Trust God, ask him to save you and he will.

Plain, simple and uncomplicated.