No progress on the continuing soap opera saga of our heating system, so tonight we'll turn our attention elsewhere. Today I've been dealing in death. Pastors do that on a regular basis, even apparently when retired. This morning was the funeral for a wonderful woman I only got to know later in life. She was a beautiful person, inside and out; it was an honor to officiate at her funeral.
No sooner had we left the reception and funeral dinner than we headed to Dunkirk for the funeral visitation for the grandfather of our youth leader, followed by the visitation for the funeral at which I'll officiate tomorrow. This retiree was on the job from 9 till 5. If I remember correctly, Dolly Parton sang a song about that some years ago. I'm not complaining; it is an honor to be asked to serve in this way, and a privilege very few are granted.
All of this I mention as backdrop for my reading in the Psalms the other day. Psalm 48 is a song of praise for the city of Jerusalem. It would be the Bible's version of Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York," or Tony Bennett's "I Left My Heart in San Francisco." It ends with the lyrics, "This God, our God forever and ever--He will lead us eternally." Someone once said that "man is the only creature whose reach exceeds his grasp." The Bible tells us that God has placed eternity in our hearts; as far as we know, we are the only species in all this world with the ability to imagine that which is beyond us. So we build cathedrals and skyscrapers, and erect monuments to our achievements, all in hopes that something of ourselves will outlive us. My wife has said many times that her greatest fear is that when she dies, she will be forgotten, and of course, for most of us, that is our fate. For most of us, our memory will only last a generation or two beyond us.
All of this is why this single verse of Scripture caught my attention. There is precious little in life of which we can say "this is forever." Most of the people I know live as best as they know how. Most of us are quite far from perfect, but I don't know too many folk who get up in the morning wondering how they might manage to mess up their life that day. Nevertheless, many do. And for those who continually strive to be the best they can be, to give back more than they take, even the best of our accomplishments won't last forever.
Today, the ephemeral nature of life pressed itself home to me. We are, as Scripture says, "a mere vapor," here today, and gone tomorrow. That would be to me a depressing thought were it not for knowing that "our God [is] forever and ever," and that he remembers us and promises us an eternal home with him when this life is over. I am grateful tonight for "this God; our God [who is, and who loves us] forever and ever."
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