On Tuesday morning I woke up to hear news that my old Pastor's brother had died suddenly from a heart attack. Again, another person I didn't know well, but a friend of the family and only in his 50's. He left a wife, 2 daughters and sons-in-law and grandchildren. He was a faithful member in his church and lived for the Lord.
Within an hour of that news, I got more bad news. A very close friend of our family, husband and father of 8 had been hit by a car. He had stopped on his way to work to help someone who had slid into the ditch and while he was out of the car, another car spun out of control and hit him. The weather conditions were treacherous and he lay there, unconscious, in the snow. At first the news was grim but not life threatening. He would be in ICU for 2 weeks, but the Dr's were calm.
And then a turn for the worse. Internal bleeding was discovered and he was rushed in for emergency surgery. 24 hours after being hit, he was ushered into Heaven. He was one of the best guys I've ever known. Always funny, smiling, singing and soul winning. He was a great testimony to all who knew him--a hero. He left a wife, 6 boys and 2 little girls who absolutely adored him--and many, many friends who looked up to him and loved him.
Needless to say these have been some of the most sober days of my life. Are poopy diapers, runny noses, whining and little disagreements really that big of a deal? What if that was the last time I changed a diaper or wiped a nose or kissed my husband? What if the words I just spoke were my last? Would I want them to be my last?
Laura's young husband didn't know when he left for work that he would never speak to his beautiful wife again. Larry's wife didn't know that when they turned off the light to go to sleep her husband would never wake up. Ken's wife didn't know when she looked into the eyes of her husband that morning that she would never see them again.
Would we live life differently if we knew the day the Lord would call us home? Perspective is everything. The things that are a big deal to us wouldn't be if we knew they would be some of our last. The Bible tells us that our life is a "vapor...that appeareth for a little time and then vansisheth away." That little bit of steam coming off your coffee this morning? That's you LIFE. That's IT. A tiny little vapor. Here today, gone tomorrow. What are you--what am I--doing to make it count?
Go squeeze your children tight. Kiss your husband when he walks in the door. Hug your friends.
And most importantly, go make your little vapor matter.
6 comments:
Your conclusion echoed my thoughts. I was SO discouraged yesterday about some training issues with my girls. And then the news came, and came and kept coming... And I realized, if today was my last day to spend with my family, I probably would be complaining less and be a little more thankful. Nothing like tragedy to snap you back into reality.
Jenna, you couldn't have said it any better!! I don't even know what to say but all that you said is so true!! Definitely need to focus my life on much better things reather than petty little stuff that doesn't really matter! Love you much!
Phew...it has been a rough week. Last night in church our pastor had a difficult time keeping his composure...as did most of our congregation. Such a tragety, but also such a beautiful testimony. Life is a vapor...so quickly we are here and gone. Thank you for the beautiful post, Jenna and I am SO SORRY for your loss of your cousin.
Jenna, you don't have to post this if you don't want to, but there is a great article about Ken that one of the newspapers did. I think you will be blessed by what you read here:
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20101216/NEWS01/12160347/Kenneth-Parfitt-s-last-act-reflected-a-life-of-faith
Very well put. Thank you so much, Jenna.
Thanks, Sally. I posted it so others could see. I had actually seen this, along with many other articles and media on him. The Lord is working through his death and getting the glory!
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