But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself. (Psalm 49:15)
It was the day of the funeral and as usual, I got up early in the morning to read the Word. As heartbroken and grief-stricken as we all were, I tried to keep my quiet time with the Lord because more than ever before, my soul needed to be in His presence. And as I mustered all of my physical, mental and emotional strength to try and focus on the readings for the day and meditate on the Scriptures before me, Psalm 49:15 jumped right out of the page and it was all the comfort I needed: “But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself.” I had read that psalm numerous times, but it meant so much to me on that particular day. We were about to bury my precious grandmother and here was the confirmation I needed that God had taken her into His presence.
Psalm 49 talks about how we all face death, no matter who we are – rich or poor, wise or foolish, sinner or saint. But what sets us apart at death is where we go. As much as the topic of heaven and hell is avoided in our Christian circles today, we need to think about where we’re all going when we die. Considering that Jesus paid a great price for our redemption and death seems inevitable these days, we have to talk about our final destination. At Easter, we remember Jesus’ death and resurrection, but we also need to think about our own. May the thought of eternity become a daily practise not just at Lent or funerals, but every day of our lives so that when we reach the end we too can say with confidence, “But God will redeem my life from the grave; he will surely take me to himself.” Words of comfort not just for us but also for the ones we leave behind.
Rising with the Son 