Last year an entire family was wiped from our neighborhood. Not all at once mind you, but over the course of a few months. The father who was old and had been in bad health left this world first leaving his two sons. The older of the sons had been in bad health for years and the younger was taking care of him (as well as the father before his death).
Then one night a fire hit the house where the two brothers lived. I was told early that morning that on of the brothers had departed this world from smoke inhalation. Knowing that the older brother had suffered breathing troubles I was prepared to face his near certain death. It was only later that I learned that the brother who could barely breath had survived. The healthy brother had left this world. After a few weeks the older brother joined his family.
The writer of Hebrews tells us in verse 27 of chapter nine, “man is destined to die once” (NIV). And like each of the family members above we have no clue when we will meet that destination. Most people would have figured the father to have gone years before he left. All knew that the older sick brother was living on borrowed time as he had been near death and revived many times in the hospital. The younger healthy brother, age 40, everyone thought would have been around for many more years.
While we are destined to die, we don’t know when that time will come (unless by some twist of fate a judge tells us). We don’t know what day we will stand to give account of our lives before God. Each second that tics on the clock brings us one second closer to the end. There are people all around us who for whatever reason have never obeyed the Gospel. Maybe they think they are healthy and have a good many years left.
There is on time like the present time to make things right with God. We don’t know when our hour will come. And as the above story shows our degree of health, or lack there of, has little to do with it. A world around us is hurting. We are now living in some of the worst of times. Let today be the day you share what you know with someone.
Until next time May The Good Lord Bless And Keep You: All Y’all!
Bobby Cohoon
North Carolina, USA
cohoon@embarqmail.com
bobbycohoon