Standing in a Cemetary

I mentioned that we attended a funeral recently. My cousin died; she was 41 and it was sudden and very unexpected. 41 seems very young to me and she left behind two children. Life can seem so short some days, especially when life ends too quickly, in our minds anyway.

I have to admit though, in this stage of life sometimes life doesn’t feel short. A friend of mine says, “The days are long but the years are short.” It’s so true. Life with little ones is tiring, draining emotionally and especially physically. It can feel thankless and meaningless at times. But when you’re stopped in your tracks by life and death, friends facing cancer and the reality that this too really shall pass you’re reminded that life really is just a vapor. James 4:14 says that “Why, you do not even know what will happen to you tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” It’s true. We don’t know what life holds tomorrow and all I can do is live fully today and for the things that matter for eternity.

I find comfort in knowing that God can be glorified in changing poopy diapers, correcting children (over and over and over), doing the laundry, wiping snot (over and over and over), etc. if I allow Him to. This too is an important job and I don’t want to take it for granted. I have to remind myself of this, do you?

We often ask students to think about what others will say about them at their funeral. What do you want to be remembered for? Will you be living only for the dash (the time only here on earth) or for eternity? Because it does matter. God didn’t just send His one and only son to die for us to have fire insurance so to speak, he died for us because He loves us and wants a relationship with us now. He wants to do things in our lives now and in the lives of others through us. What we do with the fact that Jesus died for us is the most important decision we make here and for eternity.

So standing in a cemetery is a good reminder, how am I doing? Am I living for the things that matter? What will people say about me? Most importantly, what will God say when I stand before Him? I don’t have to be Mother Theresa for God to be proud, I just need to be who He made me to be, do my best to live in His grace and love and extend that to others. I also want to be clear, God doesn’t love me because of what I do or don’t do. He just loves me (and you); but because of that fact I’m compelled to love others like He does.

Matt thinks it’s kinda creepy to see your name on a headstone before you’re actually dead (that’s my grandfathers headstone who is dead now and my grandmas name because she will be buried there eventually), perhaps it is. But it’s also a good reminder that we all will face death. I want to live life fully until it’s gone and live for things that matter.