How Do You Want to be Remembered?

I'm officiating at two funerals this week and sharing at a celebration of life service. As always, it brings to mind a few of the frustrations I've felt over the years in working with families. And it's not really their fault, it's a lack of preparation on the part of the person who has died.

Remember, the death rate is still hovering right around 100%. That means that one day (barring Christ's return in the meantime) you are going to die. I'm constantly amazed by how many people are unprepared for this reality. We avoid thinking about death - especially our own. But if you're a Christ-follower, we need to remember Moses' prayer in Psalm 90:12, "Teach us to number our days, that we might gain a heart of wisdom." Wisdom says to remember: the end is coming.

I get it if you're under fifty. You're not thinking about it a whole lot and it seems like it's going to be a long time before you have to deal with it. And hopefully that's the case. But I've done so many funerals for people in their seventies and eighties (and a few in their nineties - and one over 100) and so often there is not a lot of preparation. It's like they were surprised by their own mortality. Oh, they may have prepaid some on their funeral expenses or made arrangements for burial or cremation, which certainly helps their families. But it's amazing how few have really thought through some of the most important issues.

For one thing, the funeral service itself. As you think about your own funeral, ask these questions: What do you want it to look like? Are there special songs that you would like played? What about Scriptures that are particularly meaningful to you? Who would you like to speak? 

But most importantly, how would you like to be remembered? Especially if you are a Christ-follower.

As a pastor, it's so incredibly helpful to know a person's faith story, but when I ask family, usually all I get are some very generic, nebulous responses that have to do with their loved one's church attendance and maybe if they served at church.

If you are a Christ-follower, you have a responsibility to leave a legacy of faith. Psalm 78:4 says, "We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done."

Take a few minutes to write down the answers to these questions (and then leave them some place where your family will know where it is!)

Are you a Christ-follower? If so, how did you come to know Jesus? How did your walk with Jesus impact your life? What are some of the highlights (or challenges)? Maybe talk about people who were helpful in your walk or circumstances God used to grow your faith. Talk about how you have seen God's faithfulness played out in your life.

As a pastor, this would be so helpful to have when preparing to talk about a person at their funeral. And what a great legacy of faith to be able to share with others and encourage them in their own walk or to point the way to Jesus.