The Journey of Life
For I know Whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able
to keep what I have committed to Him until that day
(2 Timothy 1:12)
Confidence and assurance are difficult emotions to sustain in our unstable society. People and things in which we trust may prove unworthy of our confidence, perhaps through no fault of their own. However, there is one thing of which we can be certain. No matter what happens, God loves us and is capable of carrying out every promise recorded in His Word.
Because He is all-knowing, nothing ever slips up on Him. Because He is all-powerful, nothing is ever beyond His control. Because He is unchanging, we can place 100% confidence in Him today, tomorrow, and for eternity. Remembering and relying on these truths is important to our peace of mind, and vital to our ability to face the crises that occur in life.
In May 1993, my family faced such a time. After a brief stay in the hospital, with a hopeful prognosis, my dad was preparing to be dismissed. Sitting on the side of the bed, he collapsed, and just that quickly his life on Earth came to an end. Daddy was such a vital man in spite of his 80 years. He loved to work hard, and enjoyed people. He had a special place in the hearts of those who knew him, and even after all these years, he is sorely missed.
Daddy was just a simple cattleman and country preacher with an eighth-grade education, who loved his family. But more than anything else in life, he loved the Lord. Their relationship was real and personal. It began when, at the age of 18, daddy committed his life into God’s hand and, based on His Word, trusted Him to purge him from the guilt of his past, to provide for him in the present, and prepare him for the future.
Though daddy is still missed, we do not grieve as those who do not have the assurance of seeing their loved ones again in a perfect, forever world. Our sorrow is tempered by the assurance that daddy is with the Lord and we will be reunited one day:
Jesus said…I am the resurrection and the life.
He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live.
And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die
(John 11:25-26)
Sadly, we cannot always trust in people and things, but we can always trust God. What a difference that makes as we journey through life, and face our inevitable death.
He asked, “Will you follow wherever I go?”
He made me no promise that life would be fair,
but rather He promised each burden to share.
Sometimes He led me through pathways so dim
I’d surely have faltered without my dear Friend.
He never left me; He stayed by my side;
I soon learned to trust Him as Savior and Guide.
The journey was long and my body grew old,
but He never failed me or loosened His hold.
Then one day my Jesus, in voice soft and low,
Said, “Friend, there’s one more mile we must go.”
“But Jesus, I’m tired and my body is weak.”
Then ever so gently I heard my Friend speak:
“You have followed me faithfully all through the years;
“I’ve given you strength in your sorrows and tears;
“And now you must trust Me and follow, My friend;
“At the end of this mile your long journey will end.
“I have prepared there a place for the blessed;
“a place where the weary find sweet peace and rest.”
How could I doubt Him, this Friend Whom I’d known;
Who had guided my journey and each pathway shown?
“Yes, Jesus, I’ll follow; my journey is done,
The battle is finished; my crown has been won.”
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