Chasing Methuselah?

I'm terribly behind in my magazine reading.  I just finished reading the December 2010 and January 2011 issues of Christianity Today.  (Guess it's Christianity Yesterday by the time I get to them!)  But the January cover story for CT is relevant today - even if it was printed three months ago.  It's titled "Chasing Methuselah" and the hook is this:

Exercise, technology and diet help us live longer than ever.  Should those who look to eternal life care?  Nearly 100 million Americans currently use anti-aging products and practices.  Among these practices are special diets, such as the "120 Year Diet" from Roy Walford (who died of Lou Gehrig's disease two months before his 80th birthday), plastic surgery, vitamins, mineral supplements, human growth hormones, and other hormones like melatonin, testosterone, pregnonolone, and estrogen.

Most gerontologists assert that such remedies don't really slow the aging process.  But what if we found a way to stay healthy and active well into our hundreds?  What if it were possible to actually reverse the effects of aging - to heal arthritis, regain bone and muscle mass, and cure dementia by replenishing brain cells?  Over the past decade, the search for the fountain of youth has moved from legend to laboratory.

Extending life past current biological limits would have enormous social, political, economical and ecological ramifications.  [But] the more fundamental question is whether human aging is a malady in need of a cure.  Should we treat aging as a disease?  Is there anything wrong with hoping to live to  age 150? And, particularly for Christians, is it wrong to want to live past three score years and ten? (Psalm 90:10 KJV)

So far, science has been able to prolong existence, but it has not been able to really prolong life.  I've faced multiple end-of-life situations as a pastor where I had to counsel the family on what to do and what not to do when it comes the the care of their critically ill loved one.  Most of the time, I counsel letting the loved one go - because I don't believe God wants us prolonging our existence here when there is so much more to experience on the other side.

But what about before one gets to that end of life moment where the choice is either death or living in a vegetative state?  Should we engage in healthy living practices, using all that science makes available to us, in order to keep living for as long as possible?  I think the answer has to be "conditionally yes." 

What are the conditions?  I can think of at least three.  There may be more.

• My choices for healthy living cannot take away the choices for healthy living for someone else.  In other words, I cannot think only of myself, but I must also think about how my decisions and lifestyle impacts others - those near, and those on the other side of the planet.
• My choices for healthy living should not become an expression of fearing death.  Paul expressed this point in 1 Corinthians 15, quoting from Isaiah and Hosea:  "'Death has been swallowed up in victory.  Where O death, is your victory?  Where, O death, is your sting?' The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.  But thanks be to God!  He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
• My choices for healthy living should reflect my faith in Jesus Christ, and help others respond in faith, too.  Everything about my lifestyle should indicate my dependence on God rather than self or science.  "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." said Jesus in John 10:10.  My full life is a product of Jesus Christ, never of myself. 

So I've made the effort in 2011 to live a more healthy, and sustainable life.  One result of that effort is getting rid of more than 40 pounds of excess weight.  But it's not been me doing it alone, but Christ doing it through me.

Thor Ramsey, a popular stand-up comedian, built a routine on the Christian response to this question.  Take a look:



Why is this funny?  Because we know not to take it seriously or literally.  Looking at Thor, one can discern that he isn't really consuming "Twinkies for Jesus" or advocating that we should do so. 

So what are your thoughts on this topic?

Reflections on the Year that Was

First published Friday, January 2, 2009 in The Daily Sentinel


I've allowed myself to get behind in posting to this blog again.... By the time we get to mid-January, we're supposed to have already put the previous year behind us, but I think this article is still timely - because we all have to deal with death.



In a lot of ways, I couldn’t wait to see 2008 put behind me. If I were to sum up the past year in one word, this would be it: death. I don’t mean to sound morbid, but that is what I experienced too many times last year.

First, both of my wife’s grandmothers passed away in the spring – within four weeks of one another. That meant two almost back-to-back trips to Texas. The first time, we drove straight through in both directions. It just about killed me.

In between those deaths, we lost a dear saint in the Racine United Methodist Church: Lois Bell. Lois was an incredible woman in more ways than can be described. When her end came near, I was the one to tell her that her life was almost gone. I will never forget the look on her face as I explained to her that her kidneys had failed and there was nothing more the doctors could do. Lois had a momentary look of fear and sadness, but almost immediately her face cleared and became peaceful. She understood, and she had complete confidence that she was going on to a better place.

In May, the entire Meigs County community was shocked by the deaths of Julie and Julia Campbell. I had never anticipated having to deal pastorally with a murder-suicide in my congregation. It was an extreme challenge for many of us to reconcile our experience of “happy Julie” with the kind of depression from which she must have suffered to make her decisions that ended two lives.

The personal shocks of unexpected deaths did not end there. My wife and I learned in June that a family who had been dear to us back in Texas had been killed in a freak automobile accident – on their way home from church, no less. A car travelling more than 100 miles-per-hour ran a red light and creamed into the Harts’ van at window level. The Harts, their daughter and two foster-daughters, were killed instantly.

Death is the end of one stage in life, and the beginning of another. Sometimes death comes in forms less than terminal. I experienced this lesser form of change when moving out of Meigs County to begin my new appointment in the Toledo area. It was a kind of “death” for me as my ministry focus changed. In many ways, it was a bit like dying – knowing that there are many whom I will probably never see again.

I learned this fall about one of those from Racine whom I will never see again – Homer Proffitt. Homer was one of the first people to come by the house when I moved to Racine, and I think he was the last person I saw just before driving away with a packed car on my way to Perrysburg. He was a gentle man who liked to talk, and talk, and talk. I enjoyed our conversations, and I will miss him.

With our move to Perrysburg, we began new relationships with people in that congregation and community. One individual, in particular, stood out. Terry was married to the director of children’s ministry at the church, a dedicated volunteer in youth ministry, and a talented singer on the praise team. Terry’s life came to a sudden and unexpected end following a stroke in early December. He had grown close to both of my younger children as part of the summer youth mission trips, so this death was particularly hard for them, too.

Death is a part of life. It’s inevitable. But that doesn’t make it any easier to take. In fact, I think it is the hardest thing to deal with in all of life. We can lose jobs, money, houses, cars – but those are just things. Things can be replaced; people cannot. Once a person is gone, there is no retrieving him or her.

Death tempts us to lose hope. Our pain in losing loved ones can be overwhelming. So overwhelming, that we can build emotional walls to block the pain of grief. We numb ourselves and pretend that the feelings aren’t there. Sometimes we can even fool ourselves so completely that we DON’T feel – at least consciously. But the pain is still there – waiting to tell us there is no hope.

But Jesus Christ tells us something different. He tells us that death is not the end – no matter how painful it may be. Yes, we cannot get our loved ones back; but that does not mean they are lost from us forever. There is another side of death: resurrection. Jesus Christ is called the “first born from the dead” in Colossians 1:18. His resurrection offers us encouragement and hope. If he is the first born, and we are adopted as heirs and children of God, then we, too, can experience resurrection. Death isn’t the end; it’s a new beginning.

The Apostle Paul talked about this hope: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble, or hardship, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

So as 2008 is laid to rest, I pray that 2009 may be a time for new beginnings, new assurances that we are not separated from God by anything or anyone. And although I lost many dear friends and family in 2008, I am confident that when my time on earth is done, I will see them again. I look forward to the day, and pray that I will see you, too!

Dancing and Mourning: A Time for Everything

First published Friday, April 18, 2008 in The Daily Sentinel

I just returned from my second trip to Texas in less than a month. I wrote about the first trip just a couple of weeks ago. This trip was for the same reason: another grandmother passed away.

I’ve been dealing with a lot of deaths, lately. Both of my wife’s grandmothers die within a month of one another; and a very dear person from my congregation also passed away just a couple of weeks ago.

Many in our area knew Lois. She was a kind-hearted lady with very weak lungs. Yet, her lack of breath never lead to a lack of life. Lois enjoyed life to the fullest, and gave God praise for every breath she took. She was born with weak lungs, and I am told that she wasn’t expected to live much beyond her 20s. Whatever doctors expected that, Lois greatly exceeded their expectations!

When Lois’ funeral was held, it was truly a celebration of life! Allow me to share a brief portion of what was said then:

I asked Lois’ husband Don what first caught his eye about Lois all those years ago. He was quiet for several moments, as if reliving that time. Finally, he turned to me and said, “She was the most beautiful girl I’d ever seen!”

I got a chance to look at some of her pictures from back then, and Don was right!! Lois was a beautiful girl. But as I looked at a photo of Lois from 1957, I said to Don, “You know, I don’t think 50 years made a bit of difference – she looks just about the same today.”

Lois’s beauty didn’t come from her youth. It came from how she lived her faith; she was a testimony of God’s love and commitment for not just 20 years, or 50 years, but for almost 79 years!

The Apostle Paul claimed that life in the Spirit gives life to our mortal bodies, and Lois is proof of that. Her mortal body received life long after it should have died. Miracle upon miracle occurred in her. She went to the hospital so many times with blood chemistry imbalances, lung troubles, kidney troubles… yet God gave her strength and healing time and time again.

So what made this past week any different? Why did Lois finally succumb to the health problems that she had overcome so many times before?

The answer to this question is much harder, more difficult. But I think that Paul’s second letter to Timothy provides a clue. Paul wrote that letter late in his life. He was imprisoned for sharing his faith in Jesus Christ – his opponents accused him of treason against Caesar because Paul refused to proclaim Caesar as divine. Paul recognized that his work on earth was nearly done, and so he wrote this letter to Timothy – a young man whom he had mentored to become a leader in the church. Paul is charging Timothy a final time.

But these words can come from more than Paul to Timothy, imagine Lois saying this to us:

You know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, and sufferings I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. But as for you, continue in what you have learned. You have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. I give you this charge: Live according to God’s Word; know Jesus Christ personally, deeply, intimately. Be prepared in season and out of season. For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Not very long ago, Lois’ health started to rapidly decline. When I saw her on that last Monday, she was not able to talk; she couldn’t eat. I talked with Don and his daughter about being prepared to let her go. It was a hard conversation, but we prayed together and left it in God’s hands. I didn’t expect to get to talk with Lois again in this life.

But God had one more miracle for Lois Bell. Monday night, Don called me at home and said he’d been able to talk with Lois on the phone for 10-15 minutes! When I arrived at the hospital on Tuesday, Lois was awake and talking. She recognized me, and when I told her Don was on his way, she started to cry. At first, I thought she was upset because she didn’t want Don to see her that way. But then I realized that her tears were tears of relief. She was going to get to see him and talk to him, and hold his hand one more time.

All the rest of that day, Lois was able to say her goodbyes. It wasn’t easy, but it was precious. She understood what was happening to her, and she accepted it because she knew what was waiting for her on the other side.

My friends, we can learn so much from the example of Lois. How to live life to the fullest while on this earth, how to trust in Jesus Christ and know him as our Savior and God, and to give our lives back to God with joy when our time comes.

The writer of Ecclesiastes wrote that “there is a time for mourning and a time for dancing.” When it comes to Lois and my wife’s grandmothers, I find that I am doing BOTH at the same time! I mourn for myself – I truly miss them. Yet I dance for them – they have earned their reward and are with Jesus Christ forever more!

I pray that when your time comes to face death, that you will also be able to dance. If you aren’t sure if you will, then I invite you to talk to a pastor about it. And I especially invite you to talk to Jesus about it!