Life Is Great... And Then?

People say the most interesting things.

I used to work with a man, let's call him Bob, who would answer a morning greeting of "Hello, how are you?" with the matter of fact reply, "Still vertical."

It's early in the day. Everyone is getting down to work. Most people are in a good mood. It's all smiles and greetings.

Then Bob brings up death!

What were Bob's parents thinking? Didn't they teach him that people don't like to begin their day thinking about the last minutes of their life? Here I am enjoying my bagel and trying desperately to finalize a project, and Bob tells me that the best he can do is remind us that he's still alive. Maybe not tomorrow, or even later today, but at least for now Bob is upright and breathing. Well, yippee.

But, maybe Bob has it right. Maybe we should think about death early, so that we don't have to worry about it.

I'm not talking about worrying over the hospital bills, funeral arrangements, travel plans, announcements, thank you cards, etc. The people who are 'still vertical' will worry about all those details for you.

But what about preparing for the eternity that awaits after you take your last breath?

What will you be doing while your friends and family are gathering to remember your life?

Nothing? Reincarnating as a butterfly? Do you think you'll come back to live again as a different person, until you get this thing called life right? Or will you face a Creator who's a bit upset that you ignored all the signs and wonders He showed you, and now requires that you give an account for all the things you did to disobey Him?

Next time, we'll look at a few of these possibilities, and explore if any one is more probable than the others.

In the meantime, stay vertical!