Shift to the spiritual and choose life over death.
“Someday you will read or hear that Billy Graham is dead. Don’t you believe a word of it. I shall be more alive than I am now. I will just have changed my address. I will have gone into the presence of God.” – Billy Graham
On February 21, 2018 when famed evangelist Billy Graham went home to be with the Lord, the above quote from his earlier years went viral that same day, at one point being shared every 15 seconds, according to reports.
Isn’t it a beautiful quote?
It confidently captures the victory of the grave and the certainty of life after death for those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Saviour. “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die,” Jesus said in John 11: 25 (NIV).
Oh, what hope and reassurance!
Our loved ones who have died in Christ are where there is no pain, crying, suffering or death (Revelations 21: 4 NKJV), and we’ll see them again. Their address has changed, but we have not lost them. We know where they are.
Yet, even for Christians, the death of a loved one, especially if sudden and unexpected, can be heart-wrenching and numbing. You’re left reeling from its force and only those who have experienced it can truly understand.
Jesus does. He wept when his friend Lazarus died.
Jesus will comfort us and renew our strength if we turn to Him. He promised in John 14:18 (KJV), “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” Psalms 34:18 tells us, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
If you’re widowed or orphaned, God has a special message of comfort and hope for you: He’ll uplift you (Psalms 146:9), He’ll establish and protect your boundaries (Proverbs 15:25) and His wrath will burn those who oppress or harm you in anyway (Exodus 22:22).
If a loved one is with the Lord, shift your mourning from the natural to the spiritual. Take refuge in Jesus—your rock, fortress and stronghold and celebrate the life of your loved one and the fact that they‘re now in a better place.
Mourn but be careful of grief and sorrow which often sneak upon you when you’re alone. Grief and sorrow are your enemies and they will drag you into an emotional and mental abyss that can trap you in the shadow of darkness and death. When grief and sorrow come knocking, kick them to the curb and choose life. Choose to live in the light of your resurrected Saviour who has “borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.” (Isaiah 53:4 NKJV)
That’s the power of the cross.
Remember, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (Psalms 30:5 KJV).
Believer, hold on.
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CHAYIL glory is the all-powerful, great glory of God manifested in and through his believers in the earth. The CHAYIL GLORY blog is published every Monday with insights to understand and apply God’s perspective to everyday life.
