The Wake

THE WAKE

By: Julie Souza Bradley Lilly

“Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” – James 4:14 NIV

At 17, I remember losing a friend to a fatal car accident.  I sobbed as I realized a life-altering lesson about the brevity and fragility of life, and how many things I should have said while I had the chance, but I didn’t.

I learned the enormous risk taken when we hold our, “I love you,” “ I’m sorry,” “Forgive me,” or “I forgive you” for some more convenient date.

Major events in life have a tendency to awaken us from life’s slumber. The fog lifts to momentarily allow us to see more clearly about what is really important.

Today I was contemplating the meanings of the word, “WAKE”:  a vigil after death, during which people reminisce about a person’s life, or the unsettling of water in the trail behind a boat or ship.  In both, the passing of something causes a stirring and churning up in the trail left behind it.

I began to consider two things:

1. What will my passing one day stir up in those who will be left behind? Will my life stir up their faith or doubt?
2.  Are there things that I need to be saying today to others in my life? What words will I regret leaving unsaid until their eulogy?

Death should come as no surprise.  From the day we are born, we begin the march toward our last day.  In this moment of clarity, with that day in mind, what would you be wise to change today?

Father, You know the number of our days.  Decades feel so long, until over our shoulder we see their fleeting vapor.  Awaken us, so we don’t postpone what needs to be spoken today.  Teach us to build one another up and to eulogize—speak well of one another—daily. And when we come to the end of our earthly days, may there be no regret.  May our passing stir up faith, and in our wake, a legacy of love, honor and glory unto Your name.  In Jesus’ Name ❤️

https://www.facebook.com/Prayers-of-a-Ragamuffin-Warrior-171515087035441/

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