Life and Preparation for Inevitable Event

Inevitable event, together with how we live our life and making preparation for such should be one of the most important priorities to be set and settled early.

Life dealt a different set of cards to everyone. Those who dealt a good set of cards live kingly life. Those who dealt a bad set of cards live pauper life. But one card dealt to everyone that is fair and certain.

It is destined that human being must die once at their appointed time. Death is the leveler of every human being regardless of social status, wealth, power and accomplishments.

Steve Jobs

Fabulously famous, riches beyond imagination, influentially powerful

However it is good to think upon these words from the bible in the book of Ecclesiastes written by the wisest man, Solomon:

All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath. 3 This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.

Ecclesiastes 9:2

Lessons on life and preparation for inevitable event moment

Compared with the last words of Apple legendary Steve Jobs moments before he passed away due to cancer at age 56.

Quote: “I reached the pinnacle of success in the business world. In others’ eyes my life is an epitome of success.
However, aside from work, I have little joy. In the end, wealth is only a fact of life that I am accustomed to.
At this moment, lying on the sick bed and recalling my whole life, I realize that all the accolades and
riches of which I was once so proud of, have become insignificant with my imminent death.

In the dark, when I looked at the green lights, of artificial respiration and feel the buzz of their mechanical sounds, I can feel the breath of my approaching death looming over me.

Only now do I understand that once you accumulate enough money for the rest of your life, you have to pursue objectives that are not related to wealth.

It should be something more important: For example, stories of love, art, dreams of my childhood.

No, stop pursuing wealth, it can only make a person into a twisted being, just like me.

God has made us one way, we can feel the love in the heart of each one of us, and not illusions built by fame or money, like I made in my life, I cannot take them with me.

I can only take with me the memories that were strengthened by love. This is the true wealth that will follows you; will accompany you, he will give strength and light to go ahead.

Love can travels thousand of miles and so life has no limits. Move to where you want to go. strive to reach the goals you want to achieve.

Everything is in your heart and in your hands.

What is the world’s most expensive bed? The hospital bed.

You, if you have money, you can hire someone to drive your car, but you cannot hire someone to take your illness that is killing you.

Material things lost can be found. But one thing that you can never find once you have lost it, is life.

Whatever stage of life where we are right now, at the end we will have to face the day when the curtain falls.
Please treasure your family love, love for your spouse, love for your friends…
Treat everyone well and stay friendly with your neighbors.” Unquote

By Steve Job before the inevitable event

An interesting account of an inevitable event

Many years ago, I had an opportunity of accompanying a church minister, who is also an official prison counselor, to visit prisoners’ family member or close relatives.

Around that time, it was the Christmas season and this was part of a Christmas program. The prison organized this for inmates who were attending the Prison Fellowship for Christ. It was for the prisoners to brings festive cheers by giving gifts to their nominated family members.

Being part of the Prison Fellowship for Christ ministry, the counselor was to visit the inmate’s nominated relative and deliver the Christmas gifts.

This particular visit to one prisoner’s relative, we heard an interesting account of her encounter relating to the reality of an inevitable event.

Visiting an inmate’s elderly relative

Bringing the donated Christmas gift, we visited one family who consist only of one sixty plus years old woman. She was staying all by herself as her brother was in prison.

This visit was memorable as we heard this old woman narrated her story about her husband’s death not too long ago. Her deceased husband had been sickly and weak for quite some time and she has been caring for him.

Upon entering the house, the atmosphere of the place seems gloomy. This was because of her being Chinese, has some of their traditional praying altar and deities. It was her belief that these deities were able to protect their worshippers. But with her belief background, what kind of a moment when the inevitable event arrived we shall see. Contrast it with the encounter of a Vietnamese young boy‘s testimony.

As her convicted brother had turned to Christianity while in prison, this prison counselor started to explain the Christian teachings about salvation through the atoning death of Jesus and eternal life through faith in Him to this elderly lady.

What was heartening was that she did acknowledged about spiritual reality from actually witnessing the death of her sickly husband before his last breath.

The inevitable reality

Her account of the story: “That very night that she sensed that her husband was very deathly sick, she has prepared herself by being at her side to provide emotional comfort to him, being the only two people in that small house. It was a long night but events are very vivid in her mind as the moment is one of utmost importance, passing through the river of death.

Time was past midnight and she recalled that she heard the sound of dragging chains along the floor outside of the house approaching to their main door. And then appears the two death messengers with their chains with one the head of a cow and the other the face of the horse. She did not appears frightened as she is emotionally prepared for the inevitable moments to be upon her husband and instead pleaded with these death messengers for more time to spend with her husband before they chained and took his soul away with them. They were then gone and she then spent few more hours till before her husband gave up his last breadth.”

Encountering the reality of inevitable event

The account of her story: “That very night that she sensed that her sickly husband was nearing death, she has prepared herself to be at his side to provide emotional comfort to him.

The house was a small flat and they were the only two people in the house. Though it was a long night but events were very vivid in her mind. She kept watch over her sick husband during the long night. This was the moment which is of utmost importance, watching her loved one passing through the river of death. This is the reality of the inevitable event.

The time was past midnight. She recalled that she heard the sound caused by dragging chains along the floor outside of the house. The dragging chain sound was approaching to the house main door.

And then she saw with her eyes the two death messengers appearing before her. They were holding chains in their hand and one of the death messenger with the head of a cow and the other the face of the horse. This was also what most traditional Chinese believes.

Reality of an inevitable event

This was her husband’s inevitable event moments. She wanted to be by her husband’s side during this inevitable moment watching his passing.

So she then pleaded with these death messengers to give her more time to spend with her husband during his final hours. And she had some very emotional time with her husband before the death messengers chained and took his soul away with them. Her husband had also passed on.”

This woman heard the chains dragging sounds, saw the two death messengers from Hades and saw the departure of her husband’s soul. She witnessed this spiritual event that she recounted to us as she was grieving.

Have we considered our life and preparation

Poor woman! And do we believe? Yes!!! The counselor shared the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ with her.

We hoped that she believe in the gift of salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ to escape such eternal damnation as happened to her husband. We hoped that she will find eternal salvation for herself.

I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.

Revelation 1:18

What is the price you would give for your soul? Is there a price or is your soul priceless?

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

Matthew 8:36

After the inevitable event, does Hades exists

In its original languages, the Bible uses the Hebrew word sheʼohlʹ and its Greek equivalent haiʹdes more than 70 times and is related to death.

In most languages there are no words that convey the precise sense of these Hebrew and Greek words.
Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave [Sheol], whither thou goest. There is no work, planning, knowledge nor activity in Sheol.

Isaiah 5:14 “has enlarged itself and has opened its mouth wide without limit.” Although Sheol has already swallowed, so to speak, countless dead people, it always seems to hunger for more.

‘the Grave is never satisfied nor is enough.’ (Proverbs 30:15, 16)
Sheol never becomes full (Proverbs 27:20). It has no limits.

Sheol, or Hades, is thus not a literal place in a specific location. Rather, it is the common grave of dead mankind, the figurative location where all of mankind sleep in death regardless of race or religion.

So after the inevitable event, what is next?

Advice from Solomon:

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

Ecclesiastes 12:13