Last Words... & What Is Important

Some time ago, a Christian leader knew he would soon face death.  Wanting to remind the people in the church of God's goodness, to remind them to celebrate and treasure the amazingness of salvation, and wanting to leave them encouragement and instructions for living.... he wrote a letter.  

At some time or another, I think most people have encountered the hypothetical question "What would you do if you only had three months to live?"  If we look at this question seriously, skydiving adventures wouldn't be on my mind... but people would.  Wouldn't you want to invest as much love as possible into everyone in your life?  I think orphans in Haiti would be immensely dear to my heart, the art project my little sister wants to talk about for 20 minutes would have my wholehearted undivided attention, moments when family is all gathered in the same room would be treasured.  I would want to preach the good news of my Lord to everyone... my God is good, righteous, and faithful.  He's never left me, and He will never forsake me.  The oceans are like one drop of water in comparison to the awesomeness of Who He is....  oh, it is true!  I would look each of my loved ones in the eye, and tell them that I love them so very much.  I would want to make sure they would remember that God is a God who wants to bless His people, and to walk in His ways because He loves them.  That God has good plans for them...and to turn to the Lord in everything... to make God's Word their foundation.  Dear ones, live wholeheartedly loving the Lord... and loving others. 


Let's look at the message this man wrote to those he would soon leave behind:

"I write this to you whose experience is as life-changing as ours, all due to our God's straight dealing and the intervention of our God and  Savior, Jesus Christ.  Grace and peace to you many times over as you deepen in your experience with God and Jesus, our Master.
    
Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God.  The best invitation we ever received!  We were also given absolutely terrific promises to pass on to you- your tickets to participation in the life of God after you turned your back on a world corrupted by lust. 

So don't lose a minute in building on what you've been given, complementing your basic faith with good character, spiritual understanding, alert discipline, passionate patience, warm friendliness, and generous love, each dimension fitting into and developing the others.  With these qualities active and growing in your lives, no grass will grow under your feet, no day will pass without its reward as you mature in your experience of our Master Jesus.  Without these qualities you cannot see what's right before you, oblivious that your old sinful life has been wiped off the books.
    
So, friends, confirm God's invitation to you, His choice of you.  Don't put it off; do it now.  Do this, and you'll have your life on a firm footing, the streets paved and the way wide open into the eternal kingdom of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Because the stakes are so high, even though you're up-to-date on all this truth and practice it inside and out, I'm not going to let up for a minute in calling you to attention before it.  This is the post to which I've been assigned- keeping you alert with frequent reminders- and I'm sticking to it as long as I live.  I know that I'm to die soon; the Master has made that quite clear to me.  And so I am especially eager that you have all this down in black and white so that after I die, you'll have it for ready reference."


His name was Peter.

This was in contemporary wording... and he wrote much more than this to the people he wanted to remember the most important things in life.  This piece of his letter can be found in the New Testament... 2 Peter, chapter 1.  :-) 

I have much life to live... and this is how I want to live it.  This is what I will teach my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.  When it is time for me to move to heaven, they will know to love the Lord and keep His ways... and also that when they move to heaven one day, I will be ready to shower them with confetti and celebrate!