A Life Song
I have a friend who is dying. That is to say, her outer man is perishing while her inner man is preparing to go home. Her life here has been long, full and rich in every blessing. Truly, her life song is one of victory in Christ. I am confident that she will hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into your Master’s happiness.”
At this point in my life, I have a good number of treasures in heaven: those who have left a rich deposit in my life and who are now in their eternal rest and at home with the Father. I am intrigued by the reality that their earthly lives still resonate with heavenly sound, and those of us still waiting to cross over continue to bear their mark and their legacy. How like God to allow us to hear such trumpet sounds of victory, even until the end of time and then beyond.
I guess what I’m feeling is the weight of eternal glory, though I’m not sure I truly understand it. It both convicts me of apathy and compels me to press on. May my life be as the ones who are remembered and whose voices still proclaim the victory of Christ beyond the grave.
How we live matters. It matters intensely. The very fact that this life is not the end of the story means that the here and now is not limited to the here and now. Whether we are at work, rest, or play, or some miraculous combination of the three, our journeys of sanctification are being transformed by the love of God into eternal songs of praise.
Consider the impact of one life laid down. History is full of such stories: individuals who changed the course of history and saved the lives others who also gave their lives to keep the story moving forward. I think this is why God preserved the genealogies in Scripture. It may seem boring to read through them, until you realize that every name, every generation, every series of unfolding events has substance and value because they all point to Jesus. His story is made manifest in our stories.
As you enter into this week, dear reader, take the time to ponder the enriching of your life by the lives of others and consider that your life is also to the praise of Jesus; and, if you belong to Him, your acknowledgment of His Lordship is to the glory of the Father. (Philippians 2:11) How are you cultivating the things that matter, the things that have eternal value? How is your story unfolding in His story?
Until next week, beloved, let your life be a triumphant song of Christ’s victory.