“I Believe”
“I’m a realist, boy. All this religious stuff is a big crock of dreams. You’re wasting your time and I have work to do.” This southern cowboy was as rough and tough on the gentle soul trying to share God’s love with him as he was the horses he kept. His face was scarred by decades of toil in the hot southern sun. His hands cracked and withered. But, his life had been changed with a sudden illness that no longer permitted him to work and reduced him to a bedridden state. Ron had always been a roughneck. He always had a big wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth, enjoyed his nightly round of beers, and could make a sailor blush with his language. Ron and his wife, Mary Ann, had been married for 42 years. “Ron, I really with you’d consider coming with me Sunday. There’s a great sermon series I think you will really enjoy. Hey, and after, we can go grab some lunch at your favorite restaurant. What do you say?” Ron would have no part of it.
Ron’s doctor recently diagnosed him with a terminal illness and he was facing a prognosis of two weeks to as many as four months remaining in his life. As his breathing became more difficult, his energy levels dropped, his mind began to weaken, Ron essentially slept around the clock. He had in-home medical care, but Mary Ann never left his side. One night as they slept, Ron awakened in a startled-state. “I believe, I believe,” he exclaimed. “Honey, what do you believe? What is wrong? Lord have mercy Ron. You are pouring sweat,” Mary Ann said as she panicked, unsure of how to respond to her husband’s sudden behavior.
“You don’t know? Did you not see? Am I the only one who saw?” Ron was talking faster than Mary Ann could comprehend. He would rattle off a bunch of words she couldn’t understand, and in just a few minutes, he was back to sleep. Sound asleep.
As the sun rose, morning dawned, Mary Ann began her daily routine and prepared coffee, gathered Ron’s medications, prepared breakfast, and went to get him ready for his bath. But, when she went into their room, Ron was gone. He was in their bathroom, in the shower. “Ronald Eugene! What are you doing?”
“Mary Ann, we’ve got to talk. I have to share with you what I saw in my dream last night.”
“Ron, you haven’t been out of your bed in weeks. How are you in the shower on your own?” Mary Ann wasn’t angry, she was puzzled.
The story of Ron and Mary Ann is strictly fiction, but it is a scenario that plays out all too often in our society. We live our lives freely, doing as we wish, with no concept or thought for eternal things. That is, until we are faced with the reality of our transition from this temporary life to our eternal destination. What good is this life, what purpose, what reason for living is there if the focus is only on the few years we have to live here? Surely it isn’t to work, pay bills, and eventually die. What a waste! We were created to have maximum eternal impact! While the life of many “Ron’s” have been redeemed in the waning days of their life, what rewards would have awaited, how many lives could he have impacted, if he gave his life to Christ earlier in life?
Today, you may have troubles. You may have some legitimate issues that should concern anyone, and you have reason to be concerned. You may be living with unspeakable emotional, mental, or physical pain. But, in the midst of what you are enduring, take the time to grow closer to God. Don’t let a day go wasted. Shift your perspective to view this journey as preparing for eternity, not a permanent role. This life will end, but, as sold out Followers of Christ, we have the promise of eternal life.
The enemy has come to kill, steal, and destroy. He wants to exhaust you through the fight, depress and discourage you to the point you no longer care, and then, at your weakest point, wipe you off the map. He doesn’t always come in with shock and awe, he gently comes in, through suggestions, as he did in the Garden of Eden. He suggests things you should do. Today, he may suggest you give up on it all and just walk away.
I am challenging you to spend time reading the Bible, not for performance standards, but to grow closer to the Father through His word. Spend time in diligent and fervent prayer. Declare the word of God over your life and family. Resolve today that you will not waste another day with your focus on the temporal things of this life, but instead, place your eyes on eternity. When we choose to live with eternity as the target, we begin to see the purpose of this temporary life. When we live with eternity as our focus, we understand the strength and peace of God’s Word. The perspective from temporary, carnal things to heavenly things will radically change your life.
