Little Deaths

Sunset Sky

The bible tells that our heart is the wellspring of life. It is the seat of our inmost being, where our real identity lies. In counseling, it is my goal to go beyond words, actions, and feelings. I must find out why and how a person reacts on a certain way, merely not on a shallow basis. It is my task to go as deep as to where my counselee needs and invite me to be. On the other hand, God completely knows what heart is set on. No need for questions nor counseling, His eyes has a capacity to look directly at it. He knows every beat, every will, every pound, every yield, he knows the last reason of its cry, and how it was denied. He knows the reason of every why, and the very time of this little heart to freeze and die.

            Addison Leitch said, “When the will of God crosses to the will of man somebody has to die.” Life requires countless of “little” deaths- it is where a person has to utter- no to self and yes to God. Trading what is temporary to what is eternal. Something unessential in the heart must die. Then it dawned on me to ask, “Are there things or areas in my life that need to put into death?” if so, then “Why must it have to die?” After a while, there is a prompt in my heart that says, Jesus surrendered to the will of the Father and step out to die. Then He gave me John 12:24, and he says, “I tell you the truth unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies it remains only a single seed...” Jesus mentioned these words before His crucifixion; he knows that his death can bring life to all. It takes humility to surrender, but it takes a lot of courage to die. Imagine when someone died. In turn, everything has been given and provided, beautified and placed into order. 

The corpse is the center of talk, attention, admiration, and recognition. At the interment, the remain send first while the people follow to where it goes. Same with us, every time we put our “flesh” and “will” to death, as a result,  (may not be that immediate) people will follow our steps, will admire us for such courage and strength, will recognize even our utmost risk and pains, and most all, will talk about the victory we have and celebrate the new life we chose.

Jesus died not in order to be dead; He died in order for us to live. There is a saying, if there is life then there is hope, but in a matter of faith, death gives birth to hope, because after his death resurrection comes! Resurrection is a picture of His perfection.

As the strength and light of the sun yield down to welcome the moon, darkness and silence will only last for a night. Indeed, we cannot appreciate life and experience it as a whole, without being broken, surrendered, yielded, and fall. As Saint Francis prayed, “It is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, it is in dying that we live to eternal life.” For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.