Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. I met with the One who “knew me before He formed me in my mother’s womb”…the One who “set me apart before I was born” at sunrise, and the mere thought of Him knowing me so well before I ever even set foot into this world overwhelmed me. Nobody knows me like He does, and I don’t want to know anybody better than I know Him! His Word says, “for then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it” – and that one verse puts Life in Perspective for me. I came from nothing, and I’ll return to nothing again one day. The ONLY significant thing about me (or anybody else) is my Soul….and THAT’S why I give the work on my Soul more attention than anything else in this Journey of Faith. Isn’t that the way it is for you, too?

If we could just remember that life begins with “dust” and ends with “dust,” while the soul goes rushing off to the One who gave it, death sure would be a lot easier to handle. It’s odd how we cling to this life with everything we’ve got, as if this life is where we find our rewards and our Joy. It’s sad how we hold on to the ones who have gone before us as if it’s “unfair” that their spirit went rushing into the arms of Jesus before we were ready to let them go. Some people spend the rest of their lives memorializing a loved one who departed sooner than they expected…but when the Spirit goes rushing off to the One who knew them BEFORE they were ever born, it’s a beautiful thing to Celebrate and not a “curse” to talk about until we return to dust ourselves. Returning to “dust” is hard on the ones left behind, that’s for sure…but the minute the dust settles, the Spirit of the one we mourn is already in the arms of Jesus to live for all Eternity…IF they Belong to Jesus, that is. Only God knows when the day comes that He’ll call each one of us Home – until that time we live this life to the Fullest and we strive to know HIM better than anybody else we know!

Who knows why the One who gave us life calls us Home when He does? Who knows why some “die” young and some “die” old? Who knows why some “die” a miserable death while others just “die” in their sleep? Who knows why some take life into their own hands and they “return to dust” when they’re ready? We don’t have the answer to any of those questions, but we DO know one thing for sure….the body may return to the dust, but the SPIRIT NEVER DIES. The One who made a life out of dust and who gives the Spirit its Home already knew when the last day would come, and He already knew how it would end. Although we’re always caught off guard when the dust returns to dust…we also know that the One to give Life has good reason to call them Home…even if we weren’t ready….and the REAL comfort comes through knowing that they didn’t really “die” at all! The biggest part of us will live FOREVER, and life just begins after the dust returns to dust. The Promise of Heaven for those who Believe is a Gift, and the assurance of Hell is for all those who choose to deny Christ. When you look at it that way, it’s easy to understand that everything in between the dust is Preparation for Forever, and the sting of death isn’t nearly as painful as it is when we long for the dust to return.

I started this day off feeling overwhelmed by the One who set me apart before I was ever born, and I spent a while considering my Life between the dust. My Spirit is the essence of me, and it will last Forever…long after I do. I’m on Temporary Assignment, and my time here on earth is as fleeting as a vapor. All the more reason I make sure that I’m Ready for whenever I return to dust, and I do my best to share Jesus with as many people as I can while I’m here so that when they return to dust they’ll be in the arms of Jesus too! Knowing Him better than I know anybody else is the Key to my Joy and it’s the Preparation I need before He calls my Spirit Home to be with Him forever. From ashes to ashes…from dust to dust…and THEN to Eternity with the One who “summons” me by name!

How about you?