PHOTO: BillyGraham.org
While Tom Sawyer could not have planned every minute of his funeral, he sure could enjoy it.
The famous tale of him attending his own service and satisfactorily witnessing the corporate sobs and mourning might well have been the greatest privilege of his life.
To be missed. To be loved. To have loved.
I have often wondered what my own funeral will be like. It matters because my death should speak of my life.
After all, our hearts are the most expensive real estate on the planet. They have been paid for by God himself. How we allowed others to visit our heart-homes and what we offered them as sustenance will be our final testimony.
When we go home to be with The Lord, people will come to visit our heart - not a dead body. We will not be able to offer them anything we didn’t give them while alive.
Billy Graham discovered his true dwelling and his heart-home had a welcome mat at the front door and a well-worn carpet to the center of his soul. The invitation to know Jesus Christ was always put forth for anyone including strangers.
Graham planned every part of his funeral. He asked his children to preach the gospel, he selected songs and scriptures and made certain that the invitation to know the home he now enjoys was offered to anyone with enough sense to walk through that door.
In that respect, it’s purely non-fiction that Billy Graham attended his own funeral.
PORTAL TO HEAVEN: Funeral preparation is a lifelong construction project. Left up to The Carpenter, our homes will become mansions.
for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.
Romans 14:8 NASB