MAKING ROOM FOR NEW LIFE

I pulled the brittle, dead asparagus stalks to make room for the new shoots. During this time of year, our gardens and yards, fields and forests are filled with new life. May the new life of Christ abound in you as well—in all that you think, say, and do.



ETERNAL PERSPECTIVES by Sally Bair

The Death Road

While my grandson, Alex, and his youth mission team traveled throughout Bolivia, they had to take the “death road” from La Paz down the mountain to a jungle village. According to AAA, Bolivia’s Death Road is considered the most dangerous road in the world, and every week someone is killed on it. If you search for “Bolivia death road” on the internet, you’ll see some frightening pictures. After reaching the end, Alex sent a text message to his mom: “I had fear for lunch today.” Thankfully, they made it down, and back up two weeks later, without incident.

There is a spiritual death road, too, which is something everyone should avoid. We know our body will die some day. But whether our spirit dies or lives after our physical death is for us to choose. The Bible sets the choice before us. We can experience eternal life with Christ or eternal death without Him. Jesus told His disciples, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body … but I will show you whom you should fear: fear Him … who has the power to cast into hell.” (Luke 12:5)

Why would anyone choose eternal death in hell? It is the biblical promise of life after death that gives hope to believers in Christ. Without hope there is nothing but futility and fear. A nurse once told me she could tell when dying patients believed in Christ as their savior because they had a peaceful countenance and attitude, even in the midst of pain. Conversely, those who did not believe, who rejected the truth of the resurrection, displayed fear and anxiety about their dying.

Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” (John 11:25)

What a promise! The truth of Jesus’ bodily resurrection is the crux of the Christian faith. We Christians can celebrate Easter Sunday every day of the year—not with bunnies and eggs and candy, but with the knowledge that we will be resurrected some day with Christ for eternity.

It’s part of our nature to feel fear from sudden danger, as my grandson and his mission team felt while going down the Death Road. But knowing we hold the promise of spending eternity with Christ can banish our fear in an instant.

Lord, You have set before us life and death. We choose life—with its blessings of peace and joy here on earth and with its hope of spending eternity with You. Thank You for being the Resurrection and the Life. Amen.