| Good morning everyone, Our theme for this month: “Christian community” Our Bible verse for today: “For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is close. 2 Timothy 4:6 (CSB) Our thought for today: “In the end it will be the people that matter” One of the books I’m reading right now is “An Unhurried Life” by Alan Fadling. Yesterday I came to a passage where Alan wrote about how it is that at the end of life, during deathbed conversations, people seldom talk about accomplishments, possessions, trophies, or things like that. Almost always our final thoughts and words are about the people we loved and who mattered most to us. That caused me to think about my father. For the last year of my father’s life, he and my mother lived with me and my family in our home in California. He died in his bed in my home with my mother, my wife, and myself sitting by his bedside as he breathed his last breath. The evening before he died, knowing he was about to die, he shared some final thoughts. He thanked me for bringing him and my mom into our home and caring for him as he died, and he asked me to continue caring for my mom (she lived another ten years). He also talked about his love for my mother, and for his six children, sixteen grandchildren, and (at that time) one great-grandchild. As he lay there dying what mattered most to him was his family. That’s what he cared about and that’s what he wanted to talk about. In the end, it was the people that mattered. In the end, it’s always the people that matter. It won’t be the professional achievements, the houses, cars, money, or trophies. It will be the people. And if you are fortunate enough to have deathbed conversations before you die, I’ll bet that’s what you will talk about too. But in order to have those fond memories and those warm feelings of love then, we have to be cultivating and enjoying those relationships now. In the end, will your thoughts be warm memories of good times together, or regrets over missed opportunities? I encourage you to spend time with people now, while you can, because in the end you will realize that more than anything else, it was the people in life who mattered the most. God bless, Pastor Jim (Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at http://www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville) |
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