Why We Need to Be Comfortable Talking About Death
Do you struggle to think, let alone talk about death? You're not alone. But here is why you should press through your discomfort.
On Saturday, August 26th, 2017, I had plans to meet up with a good friend to go shopping. She wasn’t feeling well so we decided to hold off and go another time. I remember I ended up going to Hobby Lobby myself and bought a beautiful picture of a white horse that is now hanging in my daughter’s bedroom.
The next day after church, I saw I had missed a call from her. I called her back and got her voicemail. Not unusual. She was a wife and mom of five children who kept her very busy. On top of that, she battled a kidney disease and had type 1 diabetes.
Her husband had served with mine in the Marine Corps and she and I had finally met when we all ended up at USMC Base Miramar together. She was a believer, and we quickly became friends. While in San Diego, we got pregnant within weeks of each other and it was so fun to have a friend to share that journey with, especially since she had already been through several pregnancies.
My husband, Ben, got out of the Marine Corps in 2014 and we moved to Idaho, where he had spent his high school years. Her husband got out roughly two years later and they moved to Idaho to be near us. They were the type of friends who we all sat around dreaming about getting a huge plot of land and raising our kids together.
On Sunday night, August 27th, 2017, Ben got a call from her husband. I happened to be right next to him and heard everything. My friend had laid down for a nap and never woke up.
As Christians we are told that death shouldn’t sting, but I’ll be honest, that one stung for a long time. I took some comfort in the last Facebook post she ever posted on August 25th, 2017…the words of the song “Thy Will” by Hillary Scott and the Scott Family…
“I don’t wanna think, I may never understand; that my broken heart is a part of your plan. When I try to pray, all I’ve got is hurt, and these four words: Thy will be done.”
In the months that followed my friend’s passing, I battled the reality of the brevity of life, and how life on earth just moves on after we are gone. Modern medicine is incredible, but is only meant to prolong life, and often falls short of that goal. Only faith in Jesus Christ guarantees eternal life.
How should we live in preparation for death? James 4:15 tells us we “ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will do this or that.’” Verse 17 goes on to say, “If anyone then, knows the good they ought to do, and doesn’t do it, it is a sin.”
Is there something in your life that you know you should be doing…or not doing? Is God calling you to serve him in some capacity, but you are hesitant to make the step? Maybe now is the time to prayerfully make some changes.
Here's a prayer you might pray to start this day.
Lord, thank You for the gift of life in Jesus and thank you for life on earth. May I live each day in acknowledgment that apart from Your will and Your favor, I can do nothing. Give me discernment to know Your will, and the courage to do it. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
