Lesson #1 From Heaven

The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. – James 3:17 

I hate to say it, but the longer I live, the more Heaven gets crowded with people I know and love. 

When my grandparents passed away in their seventies, I thought they were so old.  Back when I was in my twenties, anyone over sixty was OLD. I thought it was sad, but ok if they died, because they’d lived a long life.  (I bet many of you want to throw something at me right now... just hold on.) 

Now that I’m in my late forties, sixty and seventy year olds seem to be in the prime of their life, way too young to die.  Isn’t it amazing how much our perspective changes the older we become?

Just recently, my sweet friend Jane went to heaven to meet Jesus.  She was more than ready for a new body, since hers had been consumed by cancer.  Before sickness struck, Jane was full of positive energy and a contagious enthusiasm for life.  In her late seventies, she played Pickleball, taught Sunday School, and mentored young women in our Bible Study.  It was difficult to schedule lunch with Jane because her calendar was packed with friends, family, and volunteering.

But boy did cancer ever change that.  Radiation caused burning pain and chemo-therapy ravaged her whole body.  Once she realized that she was soon going to lose her battle, she simply said she’d fought the good fight of faith and wanted to go to heaven as quickly as possible.  God sure listened to Jane’s prayers.  Instead of living the three months that her doctors had predicted, she was only with us for seventeen more days.

When Jane passed, I realized that she’d modeled, every day, what it looks like to walk in peace with Jesus during sickness and in health.  I made a list of all the things her faithful life had taught me. I’m sharing a few Jane lessons with you in hopes her faith can inspire you to live your life in peace while you trust, love, and follow Jesus. 

Lesson #1 – God’s hand has always been at work in your life. 

While Jane and I sat in her sunny living room, she shared with me how exhausted the chemotherapy made her feel.  I joked that now with her slower pace of life, I could pop over to her house on Sunday afternoons and be sure to find her home, not gardening, playing Pickleball, or helping someone else.  

Even though Jane was constantly exhausted and in pain, she exuded the peace of God.  I relaxed in her presence and asked her questions about her childhood, college years, and family life.  I desired to gain wisdom from this faithful woman who’d walked with Jesus thirty more years than I had.  

While sitting in Colorado on Jane’s couch, she began to share her fondest college memories with me.  Her fun and lively stories took place at the University of Vermont.  My eyes widened, I went to UVM too!  Quickly we concluded that we’d both graduated from the same school of education and had taken our core classes in the same buildings.  Amazing!

Then Jane shared with me that she still kept in touch with several of her Alpha Chi Omega sorority sisters from UVM. Me too!  We laughed out loud.  We weren’t just sisters in Christ, we were also sorority sisters.

I asked Jane if she’d ever lived in the sorority house.  Yes, indeed she had!  Her bedroom had been the triple on the second floor.  Mine too! 

Unbelievable!  Though thirty-two years apart, we’d both gone to the same University, gotten the same degree, pledged the same sorority, and lived in the same bedroom.  God’s hand had certainly been at work knitting our lives together many years before we’d meet.

Can you recognize how God’s hand has guided you along your path?  He has moved you from one school to another, in and out of relationships, away from danger, and to where you are today. Think of all the people God has strategically placed in your life.  Amazing!

As we look back on our lives, we can be thankful that God’s hand has been always been at work, moving us along step by step, even when we had no idea He was even there.  

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