Abstract: Death of a Saint
Heaven doesn’t have a scoreboard,
hung above the pearl lined gate.
Instead, one question is asked of every soul seeking admittance: Did you learn to love?
To turn from fear or anger, greed and shame?
Learn to give? To hope? To receive?
And, make your anxieties known to the Lord?
Did you pray for your enemies and the ones who laughed at your pain?
Did you forgive your worst offender and set them free of the debt owed to you?
Did you grow in kindness and faith?
And, to the person in your mirror, did you love them too?
This is what all saints do,
in their own way at the pace predestined by Him.
How you began the journey makes no difference,
or where you end.
What matters is how you finish the race you ran.
Beni Johnson passed away late Wednesday evening. Whatever she was, her legacy is love. She loved the Lord, her husband, and family. She loved her community to best of her ability and left a mark on the earth. My prayer today is for her husband and for us. May we all learn to love and leave our mark on the people around us. There are no small saints in Heaven, only people who learned to love.
