I sat down with Mom in the back seat of the van and opened up Crazy Love (the book Courtney mentioned yesterday) and they had left off right in the middle of this amazing story. The story is in the middle of chapter 2 (Titled: You Might Not Finish This Chapter) and it challenges us all to think about if we really are ready…SO, Are you ready???
Chan tells the story:
Brooke Bronkowski was a beautiful fourteen-year-old girl who was in love with Jesus. When she was in junior high, she stared a Bible study on her campus. She spent her babysitting money on Bibles so she could give them out to her unsaved friends. Youth pastors heard about this and bought her a box of Bibles to give away.
Brooke wrote the following essay when she was twelve, it will give you an idea of the kind of girl she was.
"Since I Have My Life Before Me" by Brooke Bronkowski
I'll live my life to the fullest. I'll be happy. I'll brighten up. I will be more joyful than I have ever been. I will be kind to others. I will loosen up. I will tell others about Christ. I will go on adventures and change the world. I will be bold and not change who I really am. I will have no troubles, instead I will help others with their troubles. You see, I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age. Oh, I'll have moments, good and bad, but I will wipe away the bad and only remember the good. In fact that's all I remember, just good moments, nothing in-between, just living my life to the fullest. I'll be one of those people who go somewhere with a mission, an awesome plan, and nothing will hold me back. I'll set an example for others, I will pray for direction. I have my life before me. I will give others the joy I have and God will give me more joy. I will do everything God tells me to do. I will follow the footsteps of God. I will do my best!!!
During freshman year in high school, Brooke was in a car accident while driving to the movies. Her life on earth ended when she was just 14, but her impact didn't. Nearly fifteen hundred people attended Brooke's memorial service. People from her public high school read poems she had written about her love for God. Everyone spoke of her example and joy.
I shared the gospel and invited those who wanted to know Jesus to come up and give their lives to Him. Three must have been at least two hundred students on their knees at the front of the church praying for salvation. Ushers gave a Bible to each of them. They were the Bibles that Brooke had kept in her garage, hoping to give out to her unsaved friends. In one day Brooke led more people to be saved than most ever will.
In her brief fourteen years on earth, Brooke was faithful to Christ. Her short life was not wasted. The words from her essay seem prophetic: "You see, I'll be one of those people who live to be history makers at a young age."
We've all been shocked to hear about or watch someone we know pass from this life. Even as you read this, faces and names are probably coming to mind. It's good to think about those people in your life, and also to think about your death. As the author of Ecclesiastes wrote, "It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart" (7:2). Stories of people who died after living godly lives are stories with happy endings.
Sadly many people live selfishly. Their funerals are filled by individuals who stretch the truth in order to create semblance of a meaningful life. Nobody would dare say an unkind word at a funeral; there is an unspoken obligation to come up with something nice to say about the person who died. But sometimes we secretly think the same thing: He really wasn't that great of a person.
The truth is, some people waste their lives. This isn't meant to bash those who are gone, but rather to warn those who are alive.
I can pretty much guarantee you that your funeral will be nice. They all are. The fact is, at that point you won't care... A. W. Tozer once said, "A man by his sin may waste himself, which is to waste that which on earth is most like God. This is man's greatest tragedy and God's heaviest grief."
When we face the holy God, "nice" isn't what we I'll be concerned with, and it definitely isn't what He will be thinking about. Any compliments you received on the earth will be gone; all that will be left for you is truth. The church in Sardis had a great reputation but it didn't matter. Jesus said to them, "I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead" (Rev. 3:1). All that matters is the reality of who we are before God.
His work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. For if what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. - 1 Corinthians 3:13-15
Perhaps that sounds harsh, but harsh words and loving truth often go hand in hand.
I think it's easy to hear a story like Brooke's and just move on, without acknowledging that it could just as easily be you or me or my wife or your brother whose life ends suddenly. You could be the next person in your family to die. I could be the next person at my church to die.
We have to realize it. We have to believe it enough that it changes how we live. A friend of mine has a particularly wise perspective on this subject. He was asked if he weren't spending too much of his time serving and giving too much away. His gentle but honest response was "I wonder if you'll say that after were dead?"
Friends, we need to stop living selfish lives, forgetful of our God. Our lives here are short, often unexpectedly so, and we can all stand to be reminded of it from time to time. That's why I wrote this chapter, to help us remember that in the movie of life, nothing matters expect our King and God.
Don't let yourself forget. Soak it in and keep remembering that it is true. HE is everything.
WOW! Heavy topic, a lot to think about, but VERY important! We were reading to Mom, but the words were radically affecting our lives! I’ve read the book before, but I think since this entire situation has transpired, the “ARE YOU READY?” question has a WHOLE NEW MEANING!!! I thank God every day for saving Mom! AND, I thank God for RADICALLY re-arranging our families priorities with this time we have left of this earth!
Mom continued to make great strides today! She worked again on all of her activities in her activity bag (thanks again to Auntie Joan!). Court even had her draw a face with hair, eyes, nose, mouth, neck and ears :o) She also worked on her naming these – we still have some work to go here – but Mom is giving it her best shot!
AND then of course there are just those moments you LOVE! Mom hasn’t really had much of an appetite for chocolate (which just isn’t Mom) and she actually asked for the hersey kisses today! She opened the bag all on her own, and pulled one out and popped it into her mouth with a grin...BUT FORGOT to take the foil off! :o) I caught it quickly and we spit it out and unwrapped it, but just a small reminder of how careful we need to be with her! She makes mistakes with such grace; I'm really learning from her right now!
We arrived H.O.M.E tonight and nothing feels quite like it! We CAN NOT thank Uncle Gary enough for making the LONG drive with us. Aunt Ellen was here to greet us and Mom was very happy to see her! Aunt Ericka pulled in the driveway shortly behind us with an ENTIRE CARLOAD OF FOOD! What a blessing for our very empty house! We had a great meal and can hardly close the fridge! Uncle Tim made sure to include a package of peanut M&M’s just for Mom – and SHE LOVED THEM!
Mom checked out the whole house and surprised us by setting the clocks to the correct time, taking the timers off of the lights and even putting the drain pipes back on around the outside of the house! She just did all of this as we followed her in amazement. Way to go Mom!!! You can just tell it feels SO GOOD for her to be home – and we feel it, too!
THANK YOU to all of you for your thoughts and prayers for safe travel! We felt them as Mom did a fabulous job making the long trek home. Mom couldn’t wait to get into her own bed and we are shortly behind her. We have her appointment tomorrow morning to get her set up for inpatient rehab!
See you in the morning :o)
Gordy, Courtney and Jessica