Nearing Home by Billy Graham (best book club books for discussion txt) 📗

senior citizens today are blazing new trails in planning for old age because the golden rules for the golden aged have been drastically altered in recent years.

Because of the tumbling stock market, everyone’s nest eggs have lost significant value. Those on the brink of retirement have had to reconsider the dependability of their pensions, 401(k)s, and mutual funds, and in many cases have suddenly changed directions. Nevertheless, planning for retirement and preparing for death have become big businesses, and there is great wisdom in responsibly caring for predictable details.

In Genesis 27, we see Israel’s patriarch, Isaac, preparing for his death. He thinks the end is near, so Isaac intends to give the greatest portion of his property to his older son, Esau, as custom requires. Unfortunately his plan is thwarted by two things: the craftiness of his wife and other son, Jacob, and the failure of Isaac’s faculties. He inadvertently blesses Jacob, leaving the rightful heir without an inheritance. What I find intriguing in the passage is that Isaac’s concern is really for preparing others, namely, his two sons, for his death; but it doesn’t go so well. While there are many lessons to be learned from this biblical account, one is that Isaac is too old to ensure his final wishes are executed properly, and this causes turmoil within the family.

While no one likes to dwell on death or prepare for it, the Bible emphasizes these matters. Recently a medical doctor was interviewed about death and financial preparedness on a popular talk radio program. She made a startling statement: “We are not made to experience death. Death is ugly.” I wish I could point her to the scripture that says, “Death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:54 NKJV).

The Bible references death and dying in many ways, nearly one thousand times. Yet the Bible remains a book of great hope. Life stands between bookends: birth and death. Outside of the rapture of the church, there will be one death for every birth. Not everyone will experience old age, but death will come to all. For believers, our hope and comfort come from God’s Word, which says, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord” (Revelation 14:13 NKJV).

When a child is born, the parents can do nothing to prepare him for “life,” for the child already has the breath of life flowing through him. What they must prepare him for are the experiences of life: the disappointments and joys, the defeats and victories, death and everlasting life. What Christian parents do not want their children to understand the cycle of life and the hope of life after death?

As a farm boy, I was exposed to this cycle from my earliest memories. There were lessons to be learned even when a farm animal died. How much more important is the human soul? Many parents today shield their children from anything that may bring sorrow. This has the potential of stunting a child’s development and causing emotional trauma. When they become adults, those once-sheltered children cannot cope with the inevitable because they have never been exposed to it. When my golden retriever, Sam, died last year, I remembered how my children used to have funerals when their pets died. It was moving to watch their respect toward death, even for their beloved pets.

Life is uncertain; we don’t know what the future may hold. The Bible warns, “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. . . . Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins” (James 4:14, 17). Since death is an undeniable reality, we should all be diligent to prepare for the last years of life. Things of this nature are serious. I find little humor in making light of such a monumental event, though I admire others who can lighten heavy hearts and bring a twinkle to tear-filled eyes in times of grief.

A family of supporters of our organization told a story about their older sister, who was failing in health. She had no spouse or children, so her siblings were lovingly caring for her in her last days. They persuaded her to accompany them to see the funeral director. He showed them a number of packages and asked, “Which one is your preference?” The siblings looked at their sister and said, “Which one would you like?” Without changing expression the sister said, “When the time comes, surprise me!” That ended the meeting, and they all returned home with light hearts and the planning complete.

In contrast, an attorney who did not practice what he preached died unexpectedly of a heart attack in his early seventies. For decades people in his community had looked to him for legal advice: transfers of property, disputes between neighbors, family conflicts, wills, and estates—the whole gamut of legal matters a lawyer is often called upon to handle. His clients had confidence in him, not only for his knowledge of the law but also for his practical wisdom and common sense. Even as he scaled back his practice and brought in a younger partner to take over, people still sought him out for advice. Hundreds came to his funeral, and the family was overwhelmed with cards and letters from people he had helped over the years. The local newspaper printed an editorial extolling his contributions to the community and expressing its sense of loss.

Shortly after the funeral, his family made an unsettling—even shocking—discovery: he had never gotten around to preparing his own thorough estate plan. Nor had he informed anyone in his family about his financial affairs; they didn’t know what property or securities he owned (if any) or even if he had a safe deposit box. Although from time to time he had expressed a desire to leave some of his estate to his church and to several local charities, as well as to help a widowed