What Will People Remember?
“He will wipe every tear from their
eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old
order of things has passed away.”
– Revelation 21:4
Sometimes life hurts. It doesn’t make sense. It leaves
you with a gaping hole in your heart that you just know will never heal.
Our community lost one of its own in a horrific car
wreck in Georgia. She fought it. She did. But she died anyway and nothing will
ever be the same.
Some people touch lives. It’s that simple and that
complicated. She was an emergency room physician noted for being kind and
compassionate. The prayers and comments came from everywhere. She helped a mama
tell her baby girl that she had a brain tumor. She told the survivor of a bad
wreck that the other person had died. She was on the hard line between life and
death so many times. Was she a good doctor? Absolutely! But what people talk
about is her heart.
She left behind a husband and young children. They all
attended our church. There will be questions. How could there not be? Mamas are
supposed to come home to us, not leave for heaven before they have a chance to
raise their babies and cuddle their grandbabies.
It’s a reminder for all of us. There’s no guarantee
that we will have tomorrow. There’s no guarantee we’ll have the next hour. What
really matters? Salvation, obviously. We need to know Jesus, to understand what
He did for us, to accept His sacrifice. We need to live with the assurance that
death can’t snatch us from Jesus. Death has no claim on us.
But what about those we leave behind? How will they
remember us? What kind of legacy are we
leaving behind?
Rarely do we stop and consider that. We’re too focused
on ourselves, our families, our immediate needs of the day to think about what people
will remember if we’re suddenly gone.
Consider the people who have gone to heaven. When I
think of Aunt Murl my mind sees her sitting quietly in a chair as she prayed.
She was feisty and outspoken and she loved Jesus with a passion that can only
come from deep, deep faith. I think of my cousin Peggy, so soft spoken and
kind. She was smart and so very proud of her grandson, the preacher. She never
stopped studying the Bible, never stopped learning and asking questions. I
loved to spend time with her talking about Jesus. I miss that.
Of course, not all memories are wonderful. Some are
filled with people who didn’t live a faith they proclaimed. Other memories are
of people forever lost because they refused to believe. There are people who
showed up on Sunday because it was expected. They never let a little church
slow down their abundant lifestyle. What do we remember about them? How much alcohol
they drank? How many times their spouse looked the other way at some “indiscretion?”
How much money they made or where they lived? Things of the world pass away.
They are not what leave lasting memories and change hearts for the better.
What do you want people to say about you when you are
gone? Think about it. Then live your life accordingly.
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