A Short Time

          “Oh, there’s a wreck ahead,” I announced, as we completed the turn onto Osuna Blvd. We were on our way to the Church for my son’s graduation recognition ceremony.  “Everybody pray,” answered our friend, who was driving. That is usually what we do when we see the flashing lights of an emergency vehicle or hear sirens. I prayed for mercy in the situation, and since I was not driving, I looked out the window at the accident scene. It is all a blur now, but there is one image that sticks with me. I did not notice the wrecked car, if it was there, nor do I remember if the emergency vehicle was an ambulance or a fire rescue truck. I remember vividly the rhythmic motion of a paramedic doing CPR. It is the first time I have seen CPR administered on an actual person. I remember practicing on CPR Annie, or whatever the name of the CPR mannequin was, during my days of EMT training. I remember practicing chest compressions, measuring with 2 fingers above the end of the sternum to get just the right location to apply the compressions. That afternoon, however, was the first time I saw it done on a real person, and it shook me.

          We tend to throw phrases like ”Man knows not his time,” and “No one gets out of this world alive,” around quite flippantly sometimes. The sober truth is that these statements are totally accurate, and the reality of heaven or hell is literally just a heartbeat away for any of us. Why would the scene grab my attention on such a momentous occasion as the graduation of my child? Perhaps because it is so much of a momentous reality. While the graduation speaker was charging the graduates with correcting the mistakes a previous generation has made in society, and making a difference in the world, my mind flashed back to the CPR scene and the thought of that person’s spirit being caught up to the very One who gave it. Parents and well- wishers were encouraging the graduates in their faith in God and commitment to Him, pointing out that there is only one thing- one person- who makes all the difference in life, the only difference of importance, really; and that is Jesus Christ and the work of covering our sin and buying us back that He accomplished on the cross.

          The CPR image and the charge to the students caused me to examine my actions, or lack thereof in light of the truth of the moment. Any life, at any moment, can cease to exist on earth and be transported into Eternity. Do I do my part in making sure that anyone my life touches not only knows that reality, but is prepared to enter into it? Oh, most people know that I am a Christian, but do they know that I wait eagerly to see my Savior face to face? Have I extended the challenge and invitation to them to be equally prepared? It is not enough to know where and how I will spend Eternity. It is my responsibility as a Christian to  tell the Good News that gives others the opportunity and invitation to make the same choice. I wonder if the victim of the fatal crash that we came upon that graduation day ever had the experience of knowing for himself Nahum 1:7,  “ the Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him.” and if anyone ever brought the Good News to him. (Nahum 1:15) With this in mind, we had better get going. We have work to do.