What are we waiting for?

I've been hugging baby A a little bit more and a little bit tighter these days.

It seems, lately, like I have been consumed with stories of tiny lives that are ending too soon. (like Anna's story here)  And more importantly, stories of mothers, like Anna, who go beyond what seems possible, of mothers who find faith where they didn't know faith existed.  A strength they didn't know was possible. Like they have this tiny seed of supernatural power tucked away in their littlest bone and somehow manage to grab hold of it and make it grow until it invades all of them and they can use that power to live again.  And I think to myself, how could anyone get through that, how can they go on, but they do.

And I would too.  As hard as that is to admit.

I know baby A belongs to God and he has so graciously allowed me to borrow her and while I get down on my KNEES and pray I never have to experience pain like that, I know where she would go should God decide to take her back.  I would see her again.

Can you say the same, if the person you love the most was taken away?

My church is currently teaching a series called "Sent."  You can listen to the most recent talk here and I highly highly recommend you do.   My pastor, this past Sunday said

"You're gonna give an account one day for what you did with the people God has put in your life, who don't know him."

Wowza. and double wowza.

I started listing off people in my head.   People who have impacted me, who have affected my life's course in some way. People I so deeply deeply care about. I started listing you.  Then I started to make another list using those same people, a list of who I know for sure, if they died, would go to heaven.  And then, those who wouldn't.

Ouch.

The people on the last list...I call those people my friends, my family.  I would do anything for them. Or would I?

I value their friendship so I'm afraid if I go all religious on them, I will lose them.  I'll be seen as that "Jesus freak" and they won't talk to me anymore.

But what really does that matter?  So they won't like me here on this earth, but maybe, just maybe I'll get to see them in heaven.  And you see, that's worth it to me. 

It's not about religion, or church or doing the "right thing," it's about the only thing in our lives that's going to 100% happen to 100% of us.

We're going to die.

Just like these tiny lives that I've been reading about.  It happens.  Sometimes we feel like it happens to soon.  You can blink and its over.  But it doesn't have to be over OVER.  We just have to open our scaredy cat mouths and buck up and talk to the people we claim to love so much. 

Try this on for size.

You're taking a walk down the street with the person you care for the most in the entire world. And as you're walking, you see a car speeding, swerving violently in your direction.  It's heading for you, straight on.  Your person doesn't see it, lost in conversation. Do you step aside and let the car hit them, knowing the outcome won't be good? No, HECK NO. You scream, you yell, you push them out of the way.  You do everything in your humanly possible power to save them from being hit, even if it means throwing yourself in front of that car.


If your person doesn't believe in God, that speeding car IS heading straight for them. And if you aren't screaming, yelling and doing everything in your power to save them, then what are you doing?  Standing back and watching it hit them.

Look I know this is hard to stomach, I've been tossing and turning over the people on my "don't know God" list.  And I know I have to reach out to them.  And I will.

I'm not talking about knocking on doors of complete strangers. I'm talking about knocking on hearts of sisters, brothers, parents and friends.

You see, we can sit around and stress and worry about all the evil and horrible things that can take us or our beloved ones away too soon, or we can stand up and share all the great and wonderful truths that will ensure we stay together forever.