January 28, 2020. Eureka Springs, AR. No Guarantees

If there is one thing we have a guarantee of......it is...... we are going to die. Unless we take matters into our own hands and determine when we want to die, there is no way we are going to know how long we will live and when it is our time to stop living. Life happens......and so does death. We are not in control of the time or the manner of our death.
For those who believe there is life after death, there is a guarantee, but we really don't know for certain what that "life" is going to look like. I believe what I have read many times in The Scriptures about the hereafter and have a peace about what is to come and have no fear about it, only the impact it may have on those I "leave behind".
We can prepare, but the uncertainty of "when" makes preparation kind of nebulous.
The reason I am writing like this, is the news of this week of the helicopter crash in California which claimed the lives of nine people. It was a tragic story, but it is only one story of many deaths this week. It is estimated that 150,000 people die EACH DAY, and every one of those deaths is tragic, but for some, a release from suffering, a passing to a better place; But in each one, it represents a loss suffered by family, friends, acquaintances, and the end of a long life, a short life, a life of accomplishments, a life "wasted", but, in every instance, the leaving of a legacy.
I mourn for the losses and the earthly lives cut short. I celebrate the lives well lived and am encouraged by the earthly accomplishments of those no longer with us. I pray that those left behind will have peace and bask in the memories shared with one no longer physically with them. I pray that God will honor each of His creations in a fair and just manner, and that eternity will be for each one what they have hoped it would be while they were here with us. There are no guarantees, and we need to grieve, but we also need to go on living, knowing that one day we, too, will no longer be "here". Each one of us is valuable, here for a purpose, and taken from that purpose by the will of God, and in His timing. Thank You, Lord for the faith, trust and hope I have in You. Thank You for life........and death.....and the "dash" we now experience.

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