Jump Start # 3915
Ecclesiastes 9:1 “I have taken all this to my heart and explain it that righteous men, wise men, and their deeds are in the hand of God. Man does not know whether it will be love or hatred; anything awaits him.”
Life is full of experiences, adventures, lessons and things that touch our hearts. Very rarely is any day normal. And, very rarely does a day pass without something to be reflected upon. Some things are very simple, like a smile. Others are very deep and they stay with us a long time.
A friend of mine died a few months ago. He passed away suddenly at work. There were some questions, paperwork and such things that led to a meeting with his widow and a representative from the work place. I was asked to come along. The meeting was informal and the person representing the company had been there when my friend died. He walked us through the events of that dreadful night. The company had cameras and he had a video if we wanted to see it. The widow didn’t. She wanted me to watch it. I did. I saw my friend collapse and people gathering around him and working on him to try to save his life. Rescue teams and EMT showed up. The company representative explained who the people were. The video ended with the EMTs carrying my friend out on a backboard to an awaiting ambulance. I saw him a little later that night in the hospital. He was already gone to the other side. He had died.
It was hard to watch that video. I fought holding tears within me. His wife was doing so well keeping it together. I thought if she saw me crying, then it might lead to her crying. I found myself praying for my friend, although what I was watching took place a few months ago and I know the outcome. I couldn’t help but pray that he was not hurting.
There are so many life lessons that come from things like this:
First, life is precious and fragile. My friend, at the start of the video was walking and talking with a co-worker and all seemed fine. But in an instant, everything changed. And, it change not just for him, but for his family, our congregation and a host of people that loved him. It takes nine months for a baby to be formed and born, but life can end in a matter of seconds.
I was thinking about this today as I was driving in. There were some careless people driving as if they were playing a video game. Little do they realize a simple mistake and life here could be over. Each day is a gift. We must remember that, use it well and honor our Lord.
Second, I was touched by the spirit, attitude and compassion of the representative from my friend’s work place. Corporate America can be all business and all facts. I was anticipating some cold, indifferent corporate lingo just to get us out of there as quickly as possible. It was not like that. He stayed and answered all of our questions and took notes of some of our questions and assured us that he would continue to help.
What a lesson for brethren when we deal with hurting folks. Personal, none of your business questions do not need to be asked. Prying into things makes people feel uncomfortable. Some do not know how to handle those situations. They feel compelled to answer the probing questions even though they would rather not. They feel obligated. What people truly need is compassion. They need prayers. They need to know that you support them.
Third, there are many times in life where we wish we could hit the rewind button and do things over. I wish I could speak to that video and my friend hear me. But I can’t. And, sin is that way. We wish we could go back and do things differently. Sin seems fun and the right choice at the moment. Later, guilt, regret and sorrow fills our hearts. God offers forgiveness, but the memory of the sin can stay with us for a long time. We can say words without thinking that hurt and destroy someone’s spirit and heart. Later, we can apologize, but the damage has been done. If only we had not said those things.
This is why passages such as in James, reminds us to be slow to speak and slow to anger. Once the mouth is opened, people may remember what was said for the rest of their lives. There is no delete button. Thoughtless insensitive actions are all it takes to cripple a marriage and divide a church.
Our verse today opens with, “I have taken all of this to my heart…” Lessons are learned, even in difficult moments of our lives if we but take these things to heart.
I watched a friend die…
Roger