Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord, our God. They will collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. (vs. 7-8)
It often seems like the ungodly win. And they might, in this life, have more than the godly. What ultimately happens, though, makes we who know Christ the real winners.
Christopher Hitchens died this morning. An outspoken, fist-in-His face atheist, Mr. Hitchens raged against religion with great wit and venom. I always wonder why people become so mad at God that they have to wage war with Him on every front. Hitchens said he wanted to be awake and aware at his death so that he could experience fully the phenomenon. What did he experience? What did he see? Where is he now?
William Farish II died on Saturday, December 3, at 2:10 in the afternoon. I was stroking his brow as he breathed his last breath here. Also around him, holding his hands and saying good-bye, were his son and two of his grandchildren. He was a quiet man who spent his life working hard, looked forward to retirement with his bride, but instead saw her through years of dementia before her death ten years ago. He did not write terse vendettas against God, but rested in the knowledge that Jesus had "saved" him when he was a teenager at a little church in Belton, Texas. He remembered the day with joy. Did he want to die? Nope. He was trying to sit up and get away from it to the very last hour of his life. What did he experience? What did he see? Where is he now?
Perhaps Hitchens missed the point all along. Brilliant and outspoken, maybe he could have listened a little more. He trusted in his own brilliance to bring light to the things he did not understand. Because he thought his opinions to be unquestionably true, he lost the light shed on them by a Carpenter Who could have told Hitchens that He agreed with him on the whole "religion" thing. But, the "horse" Hitchens trusted took him to the end without hope in a God there Who would cause him to "rise and stand upright" in the glory of His eternal presence.
William was a simple man whose opinions were usually stated for him by his wife. He told me the story of his conversion to Christ when just the two of us were going to the movies one night some years ago. His generation did not speak much of religion and politics, and he had never broached this subject with me before. He and Mom had started attending a local Presbyterian church since his retirement, but we had not had discussions about it. Mom said Dad did not like to discuss these things. Turns out, he did. He wanted me to know about his faith. No world renowned articles in major magazines opining his take on God. A simple faith that the God of the universe had met him one night in Jesus Christ and changed his life forever.
In the last days of his life, Dad could not get out of bed. He could not stand upright anymore. On Saturday, two weeks ago, though, we held his hands and watched as he doubtless took the hand of Jesus and rose, standing upright in his new home.
Who won?
It often seems like the ungodly win. And they might, in this life, have more than the godly. What ultimately happens, though, makes we who know Christ the real winners.
Christopher Hitchens died this morning. An outspoken, fist-in-His face atheist, Mr. Hitchens raged against religion with great wit and venom. I always wonder why people become so mad at God that they have to wage war with Him on every front. Hitchens said he wanted to be awake and aware at his death so that he could experience fully the phenomenon. What did he experience? What did he see? Where is he now?
William Farish II died on Saturday, December 3, at 2:10 in the afternoon. I was stroking his brow as he breathed his last breath here. Also around him, holding his hands and saying good-bye, were his son and two of his grandchildren. He was a quiet man who spent his life working hard, looked forward to retirement with his bride, but instead saw her through years of dementia before her death ten years ago. He did not write terse vendettas against God, but rested in the knowledge that Jesus had "saved" him when he was a teenager at a little church in Belton, Texas. He remembered the day with joy. Did he want to die? Nope. He was trying to sit up and get away from it to the very last hour of his life. What did he experience? What did he see? Where is he now?
Perhaps Hitchens missed the point all along. Brilliant and outspoken, maybe he could have listened a little more. He trusted in his own brilliance to bring light to the things he did not understand. Because he thought his opinions to be unquestionably true, he lost the light shed on them by a Carpenter Who could have told Hitchens that He agreed with him on the whole "religion" thing. But, the "horse" Hitchens trusted took him to the end without hope in a God there Who would cause him to "rise and stand upright" in the glory of His eternal presence.
William was a simple man whose opinions were usually stated for him by his wife. He told me the story of his conversion to Christ when just the two of us were going to the movies one night some years ago. His generation did not speak much of religion and politics, and he had never broached this subject with me before. He and Mom had started attending a local Presbyterian church since his retirement, but we had not had discussions about it. Mom said Dad did not like to discuss these things. Turns out, he did. He wanted me to know about his faith. No world renowned articles in major magazines opining his take on God. A simple faith that the God of the universe had met him one night in Jesus Christ and changed his life forever.
In the last days of his life, Dad could not get out of bed. He could not stand upright anymore. On Saturday, two weeks ago, though, we held his hands and watched as he doubtless took the hand of Jesus and rose, standing upright in his new home.
Who won?
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