As we continue the journey into my story, it is difficult to know what to share next.  God is always expanding our knowledge through our experiences.  One of the areas that many fear and do not like to think about is death, and yet every funeral is a reminder of an upcoming experience we all will face.  We read in Hebrews 9:27, "And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment"  Yes, death is the inevitable end of our life in our physical body, here on earth.  However, as a believer in Christ, our life, eternal life continues.  According to Genesis 1:26, we have been made in the image of God, in His likeness.  As such, we are eternal beings.  When we look at the following scriptures, we will see that, as a believer in Christ, we need not fear death.

 Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain (to our advantage)."

 Let us read 2 Corinthians 5:1-8, "For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, 3 if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. 4 For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. 6 So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.  Verse 4 tells us that our mortality will be swallowed up by life!  It is awesome to know that as believers, when our physical body dies, we receive a new body and spend eternity with Jesus!

 Then, we read a promise from Jesus in John 14:1-3, "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 "In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place (a place or spot where one can settle, abide, dwell) for you. 3 "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  What an amazing promise.  When Jesus said I go and "prepare" a place, the word "prepare" means, "to make the necessary preparations, get everything ready." Let your thoughts dwell on that truth for a few minutes; He is getting everything ready for you, so that you have a place to settle, abide and dwell, in His Father's house!

 My perspective of death changed dramatically when my grandfather passed away.  My grandfather received Christ as his Savior at a revival meeting when he was 90 years old!  His reaction to that experience was to say, "Here I am, 90 years old and just now beginning to live!"

 My brother and I, who had a very close relationship with our Grandfather,  were on a trip to Egypt to visit our Aunt Lois, who was a missionary there.  During this time, my grandfather had quite an experience.  Grandfather's house was up the hill behind my dad's home.  My Aunt Mae, grandfather's daughter, was helping care for him after he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.  One day, she called my dad and told him that Granddad had fallen out of bed and she was not able to get him up and back into the bed.  Dad went to the house and found him lying on the floor, stiff as a board, and white as a sheet.  He was also cold and not breathing.  My dad held Granddad in his arms and prayed, "Please Lord, don't let him go while the boys are not here."  Granddad's body grew warm and went limp as life came back into his body.  The family knew he had had a life after death experience.  It was an event so personal to him that he would not talk about it.

 Time passed, my brother and I had returned from Egypt.  I was away with the USAF Reserve for the next part of the story.  Granddad was supervising my dad and brother as they planted the garden.  Granddad told them he was not feeling well and was going to his house to lie down.  It wasn't long before Aunt Mae came to the garden saying that Granddad wanted to see them.  When Dad and Kevin entered his room, they said he was sitting up against the headboard of his bed and that his face was glowing!  They told me they could tell he was already seeing heaven.  He said to them, " I am not going to make it this time, but I wanted to say goodbye!"  He got a big smile on his face and went home to be with his Savior.  I was really sorry that I had missed that experience.  My commander did allow me to go home for the funeral.  I was apprehensive about seeing Granddad dead. I thought it might be better to have my last memory be that of his being alive.  I went to the funeral early so that I could see him without anyone else around.  When I walked in and saw him, I was surprised to realize that the only thing there was an empty body.  He was not there!  He had already left the planet and was in the presence of the Lord.  Death for the Christian is not the end of the story, but it is a continuation!

 What comes next in my story is phenomenal!  We have a friend, Dean Braxton, who has spoken at our church a couple of times and has shared his life and "continued" life experience with us.  Part of Dean's story which he shares includes the extraordinary experiences he had in a life after life encounter with the Lord in heaven.  Dean has documented proof from the doctor who worked on him, that he was , to quote the Dr., "really really dead" for an hour and forty-five minutes!  Dean shared with us that he didn't experience death because his spirit left before the body died.  I encourage you to read Dean's book, In Heaven.

 This past year, my wife and I have lost some of our closest friends and relatives.  Our close friend and senior elder was eighty-five years old and passed from a battle with covid.  Another good friend and member of our church passed from alzheimer's.  Eric's sister passed away after a long battle with a disease.  There have been many others, not as close to us personally, however, we are aware of and affected by their passing. We have been notified of two more deaths in the past week and a half.    We have both had a number of family members who have gone before us.  Hearing and knowing of so many who have left the planet lately, reminds us of our immortality.  In fact, that is the reason I decided to share this part of my story line with you this week. 

 Even though the losses can cause us great sorrow, for a season, remember this:  For those who know Christ, death is not our enemy, it is the beginning of our greatest adventure!

 I love the following verse of scripture.  It has brought me great comfort in the midst of all of the sorrow.  Isaiah 57:1 and 2 (NLT), "Good people pass away; the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come. 2 For those who follow godly paths will rest in peace when they die."

 Psalm 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints."

 As we live in these uncertain perilous times, we know for a certainty that our eternity awaits us!  Jesus asked Martha a very important question in John 11:25 and 26, "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. 26 "And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die (be subject to eternal misery). Do you believe this?"  My question to you, "Do you believe this?"  Whoever believes in Jesus as their Savior and Lord will be saved and spend their eternity in His presence!  Thank You Jesus!

 It is vitally important though for you to understand that every one of us has been created as an eternal being. Our life on this earth will one day come to an end; then our eternity will begin!  The choice that we make before we draw our last breath will determine where we will spend that eternity, in His presence or forever separated from Him and His love.

 God's heart's desire and mine is that you will make the decision to receive Jesus into your life, if you have not done so already.  He has made a way where there was no way and He has made it easy.  Romans 10:9, 10 and 13, "that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. ... 13 For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved."  1 John 5:5, "Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?"  We can know that we are saved.  We can have that reassurance because of Romans 8:16, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God"

 If you have had a difficult time thinking of death and have been fearful concerning it, I pray this blog has helped increase your assurance in God's faithfulness and provision for you regarding it and your eternity.  I trust you have been encouraged by His Word.

 May God's peace rest upon you until next time!