Making Friends With Death

Have you ever thought of what might be said at your own funeral? We might think it is morbid to imagine this. Dag Hammarskjöld suggests that when we are younger, Death is in the background like a stranger we ignore. But as we grow older, Death begins to move closer to us. We must make friends with him. This may seem impossible, but for Christians death has lost its sting and its fearfulness (1 Corinthians 15:55, Hebrews 2:15).

How do we make friends with Death? For believers in Christ, Death will meet us at the end of our journey and convey us to our dearest friend, Life (John 14:6). But what is Death’s role now as our friend? He is here as an accountability partner. As we think of our mortality, and our desire to finish well, Death can inspire us to live the rest of our life in a manner worthy and pleasing of the Lord.

Facing death gave Samson focus, reminding him of his calling and encouraging him to call out to God. When the men of Judea betrayed Samson to the Philistines, Samson knew they wanted to kill him. Instead of fighting against his own people, he exercised faith and yielded himself up to his enemies. He believed God’s promise that he would begin to deliver his people from the Philistines. So he trusted God to defend him from those who had come to kill him. After the battle, he was literally “dying of thirst”. He again called out to God for help. And God heard him and in response to his faith provided water from a rock. Death reminded him to depend on God.

As Lewis Carroll taught me, if we don’t know where we are going, it doesn’t matter what road we take. Unfortunately, many people are so absorbed in day to day living, the struggle to survive, their work and their pleasures, that they never think about where they will end up. Others just drift through life, one day at a time slipping away, without reflecting the legacy they may leave behind. 

Reflect:

What would you like people to say at your funeral? What legacy would you like to leave? What change do you need to make now if you want to arrive at this destination?