Finished?

 A woman of God whom I greatly respected and admired went home to be with the Lord a couple of days ago. Though she and I weren’t particularly close in that we didn’t socialize much outside of the church, I always knew she was there should I need her and I believe she knew the same of me. Her passing floored me and hurt me and in all truthfulness, it angered me. Why her? The response I got was, “She was finished.”

Those three words have stayed with me and quite frankly are messing with me. Though she was able to enjoy senior citizen perks, she was not old. She was a vital part of her church and ministry. There was still so much more good she could do, that she was doing. But I’ve learned to not question God (which is very different from asking God a question.) Still, “She was finished” won’t leave me alone.

Shortly after my last blog post back in April, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. While I believe with all my being that I am healed, should God choose to heal me on the other side of eternity would I be able to say, “I have finished?” Have I done what God placed me on earth to do? Will I be able to say like Paul did in 2 Timothy 4:7-8, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”? 

There is a call on my life. There is a purpose for my presence on the earth. When God chose me and saved me and filled me with His Spirit, He did so for a reason. My job, every believers’ job, is to seek Him. I’ve been seeking purpose but He’s been saying, “Seek Me.” In seeking Him, earnestly seeking Him, I will find my purpose AND the passion to fulfill that purpose. I suppose you can say I’m blessed in that I already know what I’m to do. He told me years ago. I have been guilty of doing, of being, what He’s called me to do and be when it was convenient for me. Father, forgive me.

The Christian race is not a race of convenience. Not if you’re racing to win. And for the record, you win by finishing YOUR race. It doesn’t matter who you outran if you’re in the wrong race or the wrong lane. I can do a lot of good but if it’s not what God’s told me to do, I’m wasting time. If it’s not what God told me to do and God calls me home, I’m finished whether I completed my work or not.

I don’t think that dear woman whose loss I mourn with so many others had planned to go home with the Lord when she did. But I do believe she was ready. What’s more, I believe she heard Him say, “Well done.” My goal and I pray your goal, is to not only make it into Heaven and hear The Father say, “Welcome home”, but to cross over and hear, “Well done.”