Dear Friends,

We don’t need to worry about loved ones when they die. We can live with confidence and hope concerning our own deaths, too.

On All Saints Day, we celebrated those who died since last year. We read twenty names, and lit as many candles. This gave me occasion to reflect about what I believe happens when we die.

• (1)   I believe when we die we will be with the same God we were with before we were born. We don’t know the details, and don’t need to know. God knows. (Psalm 139:13-16a)

 
• (2)   I believe what happens after we die is a mystery, and that’s okay. In this life we see in a mirror, dimly. (I Corinthians 13:12) Mystery is good. It keeps us humble and reminds us Who is in charge. We walk by faith, not by sight. (II Cor. 5:7)

 
• (3)   I believe when we die God receives us fully because God loves us, not because we believe in God or don’t. God’s love is a given, non-negotiable on God’s part. There is nothing we can do to cause God to stop loving us. (Romans 8:37-39)

 
• (4)   I believe when we die into God’s embrace, we will also experience a spiritual communion with those who have died in the faith. “I believe in the communion of saints…and the life everlasting.” (The Apostle’s Creed) An eternal connection awaits.

Years ago a man approached me, following Holy Communion. His wife had died earlier. “Do you believe in life after death?” he asked. “Yes,” I answered. “So do I. And every time I take communion I have a sense of her presence with me. Do you think that could be real?” I said, “Yes, I do.” Can’t prove it, but I believe a holy connection exists in this life, giving us a foretaste of heaven.

Do not worry. Move forward with confident, joy-filled hope in what God has accomplished on your behalf through Jesus Christ. Trust in what God is doing presently. Rejoice in what God promises yet to do.

Steve Langhofer  •