THE LAST MILE

                My Christmas revelry and New Year’s joy were tempered by an expected, yet unwanted event. My friend Jim ended his struggle with cancer sometime during the night of January 2. For the past two months God gave me the privilege of walking with Jim on his last mile on earth. We had the chance to talk about faith and heaven, doubts, fears and hopes. Jim walked his last mile with a calm assurance that this was not the end of the story. Jim was an adventurer and he told me that he was looking forward to his next great adventure.

                As I struggled to support and encourage Jim I shared with him a passage of scripture that has taken on new meaning for me. It is found in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NIV).
                        Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

                Watching someone slowly die is a sobering experience. I found myself torn between wanting to turn away and wanting to be present for Jim as much as possible. I did a little of both. Along the way God spoke to me as I watched Jim live out the truth of these verses.

                There are so many things that weigh us down in life. We often allow the things that scream the loudest grab our attention while the things that really matter slip into the shadows of life. We get discouraged because our plans don’t work out. We become anxious over things that we will barely remember a few months from now. But when the clock of life is ticking loudly and you know that the end is near all of those inconsequential things fade.

                I watched as Jim moved from doubts and apprehensions to a calm assurance. He no longer cared about the things that dominate our lives. Instead he focused on helping his family walk this journey with him. His focus shifted from what was temporary to what is eternal.

                We are all wasting away, just like Jim, only at a slower pace. This body that we care so much about is, as Paul puts it, only a tent, which will one day be folded up and put away. What is really most important is what is inside of the tent. Is our spirit growing? Are we gaining an eternal perspective on life? Is our focus on what is passing or on what is lasting?

                I have been reminded that we are just fragile jars of clay. But God has placed within these imperfect vessels His eternal glory. When we begin to understand this, we are able to face the challenges of life with greater confidence and calm.

                But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 2 Corinthians 4:7-10 (NIV)

                Jim has walked his last mile on earth. It was a difficult journey in many ways. But even as Jim’s body faded his eyesight improved. He began to see more and more clearly what is most important. He reached out his hand and took the hand of Christ. On January 2, 2012 Jesus escorted Jim through the final steps of his journey and welcomed him home.