The passing of one of our cherished church members at the age of 96 prompted me to reflect on life, death and the space in between. I only knew her in her final years, but I can testify that Vivian wore big hats, wore even bigger smiles, and, bigger still, was her love for her Lord. It was a love primarily expressed in song. Morning and night, she sang hymns—all of them!
Vivian finished well, but from a biblical perspective, it began much, much earlier. According to Ephesians 1:4, the Father “chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.” For every believer, you were the light of His eyes before He said, “Let there be light.” He knew you and chose you before matter mattered. Regardless of your earthly circumstances or your parents’ intentions, you, Christian, were always part of the plan.
God’s timing is perfect, which means you were born at precisely the right moment. In fact, in the months leading up to that moment, God was at work.
No one was there but you and God. Secretly, you were intricately woven. You are perfectly imperfect. Your eyebrows, elbows and toes are exactly as He wants them. You were equipped to be who you are for the length of days He has chosen.
Having formed you in the womb, God has sustained you through your first and second births. He delivered you from both the womb and your sin.
Just as God upheld Vivian for 96 years, so He is with you at every moment and every step of your life, even in its twilight. According to Scripture, you “have been borne by Me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am He, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save” (Is. 46:3-4).
More beautiful than the view of the sun sinking between Grecian islands is the sunset of the lives of God’s children. “Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints” (Ps. 116:15). God cherishes the view of the end of the believer’s life. This only makes sense in light of what Jesus said in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who believes in Me shall never die.” The grave is not the final destination.
If you are His, then, like Vivian, you will sing to the Lord a new song—with perfect pitch in every note of praise. Take comfort in the assurance of a sovereign God who cares for you from cradle to grave. Between the two, sing with confidence the truths of In Christ Alone.
No guilt in life, no fear in death—
this is the pow’r of Christ in me;
From life’s first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny.