The Years In Between

My son (a 2^nd grader) and I attended a funeral recently. One of his classmate’s mother had unexpectedly passed away several days ago. The news of her death affected our school community and the classmates of her children (2^nd & 3^rd graders). Her passing reminded me once again of the brevity and the important things of life, and made me miss my own mom who passed away years ago.

At the funeral service, the pastor called all the children up front for a brief talk. Since many of the 2^nd and 3^rd graders from the school came out to support the two girls and her family, the front area was full with young children. The pastor shared about the two dates written on the program. The first date was when the mom was born. Those who don’t believe in Jesus know that the second date is when the mom died. But, for Christians, we know that the second date is when her life began in heaven, the eternal home. The time from her birth to her life in heaven is “the years in-between”.

That phrase, “the years in-between” caught my attention. It reminded me once again that my home on earth is temporary and that I am just passing through. It made me evaluate if I was making myself too comfortable on this earth, knowing that it will all pass away one day. It also made me evaluate to see what I was doing with “the years in-between” until I reach my eternal home.

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. – Colossians 3:2