On Top The World With Both Feet

I’m getting ready this morning to go to a funeral. I have to admit I don’t like funerals. There is no fun in funerals. But I’m struck again with how fragile and fleeting life is on this earth. Pastor Hank served for several years as the associate pastor of Freedom. Dan and I were he and his wife’s armourbearers for five of those years. While he and I weren’t that close in the last few years of his life, I am saddened by his loss. Among some of Pastor Hank’s famous catch phrases were “I’m on top the world with both feet.” and “What’s happening good?” He was a man who loved being a pastor and genuinely loved people. His life was cut too short. Life is so short, and eternity is so long. I realize funerals are merely closure for the people left here on the earth. I know that Pastor Hank is now rejoicing in heaven. I know that my spiritual father, mentor and friend Pastor Arthur met him at the gates and together they are praising Jesus, and rejoicing once more. James 4:14 (NIV) “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Just a few moments ago I was going through my girls’ clothing trying to pick out what would be suitable for them to wear at this funeral. I found myself stressing out over the messes that they had created, and grumbling at what wouldn’t match. The futility of it all struck me. I understand the girls need to look decent, but is it really worth me stressing out over? Matthew 6:27 (NIV) “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?” So today I will remember the beauty of a life that was “on top the world with both feet.” I will try not to stress over the small things. I will try to find celebration in the ending of a life, and joy for where Pastor Hank is now. Life is so short. Wherever you are, I encourage you to make it a good one and to make it count. Remember God does have awesome plans for your life. Get Excited!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

....And I broke the Pickle Jar

Image
Last week my oldest daughter came running to me for help. I had just bought a new jar of pickles and she could not open them up. Surely, Mom could do it and this was going to be an easy thing. I sometimes wonder how they get those lids so tightly on jars in the factory. I was not going to pull the wimp card but I could not get that lid off. I tried banging the bottom with the palm of my hand. I saw someone do that once. It did not work. I tried twisting it, and it would not budge. I even tried getting a butter knife and breaking the seal by trying to wedge it between the lid and the jar. Nothing was working. Dan was not home and even if he was, I really hate admitting when I cannot do something like this without his help. I was going to get that jar open! Finally I took the opposite end of a butter knife and whacked at the lid. I thought a couple smacks would make the jar open, and it did. Evidently, I do not know my own strength. With the sound of breaking glass crackin
Read more

Lessons Learned In The Pruning Season

Image
  People in the church often have a misguided notion that God always operates in the timing and the way that we think He should.   His Word is quite clear that His ways aren’t our ways (Isaiah 55).   The longer I’ve been pursuing a life in the Kingdom, I realize that God is really into times and seasons.   Often one season may look totally different than another season.   Nature reflects this so well.   Winter and summer may look completely different, but they each serve a purpose.   It’s important to discern those seasons.   The sons of Issachar understood this too (1 Chronicles 12:32). It’s important to trust God in those seasons and be able to recognize that God is faithful no matter what a situation may look like.   We often like to talk about the exciting season.   We all want to hear words about harvest and the manifested promises.   We all love to hear stories of the faithfulness of God.   What about the season that things appear dry and dead?   What about the seasons where
Read more

Don't Fall For the Fake Jakes!

I hope all of you had an awesome Resurrection Weekend! He is Risen!! Several weeks ago I had someone claiming to be T.D. Jakes begin communication with me on twitter. At first I brushed him off thinking there was no way he was the real T.D. However this individual was persistent. We began exchanging a few direct messages back and forth. He then proceeded to invite me to go with himself and several other ministers over to Japan to preach over there. That was when I told him to email me at my website email. The conversation continued. At first I didn’t believe at all this was the real T.D. Jakes. However the more we exchanged emails the more I really thought it might. His phrasing on how he worded things sounded like the real T.D. The text emails were coming from Texas, and it was obvious this man spent a long time familiarizing himself with T.D. and his website because of the way he wove legitimate things about the real T. D. into the conversations. This went back a forth for several we
Read more