Live Well... Die Well..!

 
Almost instinctively I knew something serious was in the wind for the older couple that had knocked at the door of the manse.  I knew them well.  They were in church every Sunday.  They always arrived early to make sure they got their favourite seats in the back row.  That was so they could duck out immediately the worship service finished and then it was off to the carpark and home.  I don’t recall them ever staying for a cuppa after church, the way the larger part of our membership did.  I had visited them at home several times and on one such occasion she lamented that they didn’t feel all that much at home in the church.  I gently suggested they didn’t give people much of a chance to befriend them as they were always first out the door at the conclusion of the service.  I suspected they both struggled with feelings of inferiority.  They were simple country people who had moved into town when they retired.

I invited them in and my wife offered to make them a coffee.  They declined and mentioned they had come only to share some news and that they had other calls to make.  It seemed they had just returned from a visit to their doctor for some test results and that the outcome had not been good.  He had been diagnosed with an inoperable and terminal cancer.  We talked about it at some length and they shared as much information as they had been able to glean from their medical professionals.  The prognosis was that at best he might get to see the year out.  Since the holiday season was only just over it meant that humanly speaking he probably had about a year to put his house in order.

I asked him how he felt about that.  He was surprisingly positive and upbeat.  He said, “I’ve enjoyed a very blessed and full life and I’ve experienced God’s loving care all these many years.  If the Lord wants to take me home let Him do what He knows is best.”  Well, Peter didn’t make it to the end of that year but he never wavered from his positive approach to the end of his life.  His trust in God was a great witness to family and friends.  He had also insisted on the simplest of Christian funerals with no eulogy and no lengthy sermon – just a graveside Bible reading, some words of comfort and the prayers and committal that are the normal part of a funeral service.  The simplicity of the funeral service also spoke volumes to those who attended.

Thinking about the end of Peter’s life reminded me of some words of wisdom that were spoken by my mentor early in my ministry.  For some reason the conversation had drifted to end-of-life issues.  He commented, “John, Christians not only need to live well, they also need to die well!”

I’ve often thought about that over the years.  Christians can die well.  They already have their citizenship in heaven and when they depart from this life they know they will be with Jesus.  That’s not only a wonderful assurance to those who are facing the end of life; it’s also such a comfort for those left behind.

At one church I served I made regular visits to some elderly folk in a nursing home.  One morning I walked into some very animated discussions among the staff just as they were taking their tea break.  I asked the manager what had happened.  She told me that the previous night two elderly resident ladies had both died, virtually at opposite ends of the nursing home – and with opposite outlooks too.  At one end of the home the lady had spent her last breath yelling obscenities at heaven for God’s unfairness at taking her life from her.  At the other end of the building a few family members had gathered with their mother and grandmother and spent her last hours singing songs of praise to God together.  It was reported that even though her voice had petered out to a whisper Gran had participated in the singing with her dying breath.  That contrast made a huge impression on the staff at that nursing home and it gave the Christian manager many opportunities to talk about the importance of faith and our relationship with God.

It is so true that Christians need to live well but it’s equally true that they also need to die well.

John Westendorp
2MaxFM  11/01/2026


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