Editor's note: Yesterday, we featured two devotions from Hope for Hard Days by Max Lucado. You can read them here and then continue reading below.
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Your life is like a mist. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away. — James 4:14
You, as with all God's children, live one final breath from your own funeral.
Which, from God's perspective, is nothing to grieve. He responds to these grave facts with this great news:
The day you die is better than the day you are born. — Ecclesiastes 7:1 NLT
Now, there is a twist. Heaven enjoys a maternity-ward reaction to funerals. Angels watch body burials the same way grandparents monitor delivery-room doors: "He'll be coming through any minute!"
They can't wait to see the new arrival. While we're driving hearses and wearing black, they're hanging streamers and celebrating. We don't grieve when babies enter the world. The hosts of heaven don't weep when we leave it.
The angels don't weep at the thought of death, but do you? Do you dread death? And is that dread robbing you of the joy of life? Is it keeping you from fully stepping into the life you were created to live? Because that's why Jesus came. To free you from death's sting.
Death isn't an ending; it's the turn of a page and a step into a glorious new chapter.
When fear and dread creep into your heart, don't let them rob you of today's joy, of today's adventures. Instead, remember why Jesus did what He did.
My Scripture of Hope
Since these children are people with physical bodies, Jesus Himself became like them. He did this so that, by dying, He could destroy the one who has the power of death — the devil. — Hebrews 2:14–15
God's Promise of Hope to Me
Death has no power over me. Jesus has taken away its sting. I don't have to worry about what comes next because Jesus is already there waiting for me.
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