Long, drawn-out illnesses, tremendous costs, strain on the family. These are all devastating events we never want to talk about but know may happen to us or someone we love.
Today, a very dear friend passed away. She was a Southern belle, a thoroughly gracious person who exuded charm from her head to her toes. She walked with the stature of fine royalty and had the intelligence of someone well-read and schooled. I will deeply miss her.
She was once my children’s principal, once my boss, and my pastor’s lovely wife. She held all these positions and touched so many people with her elegance and great humor. Oh yes, she had a wonderful humor that fit her Georgia peach accent well. She has stood behind the pulpit in our church doing a meaningful reading and in the course left the audience bursting with laughter with her dry wit.
She was my boss while I taught at a local Christian college; she was highly respected for her knowledge of the educational system and love for teachers in training. When I left my position to become a director of a local children’s ministry she dryly said, “If you were leaving for any other reason, I would not let you go.” That was so like her to say!
As a pastor’s wife, she set her boundaries quickly. We knew that church did not come between her husband and his family. That was great to hear. She told us soon after arriving that she did not play the piano like so many other pastors’ wives, but she could tell a joke with the best of them! It sort of set us back on our heels, looking at this elegantly dressed lady and hearing those words! She was a gem.
She cherished every breath taken and thanked God for her life. Having one lung removed in her early years she pushed on with one working lung which later became a labored lung. In her final days she was relying on oxygen to take every breath. It was painful for her family to watch her slip away with every visit! Her salvation was their only peace in the violent storm of death.
So it’s final. She’s gone. Those few short, labored breaths and then…the last. What does the mind think of during that time? Does it see the faces of loved ones? Is it steeped in regret? Does it have a longing for a look at the Savior they accepted years ago? I won’t be able to answer that until it’s my time. But for my friend Maxine, I’m sure she did what this song suggests:
"Just think of stepping onshore and finding it Heaven,
of touching a hand and finding it God's
of breathing new air and finding it celestial....
of waking up in glory and finding it home..."
Maybe you need to take inventory of your life today. Will you leave a legacy like Maxine did? Will anyone know you were a believer by your actions, your life, or your care? Don’t take that last breath with regrets. Live for the King today so when you step onshore, there will only be GLORY!
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