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 Our theme this week is Fear of Death. Death is a hard topic for many to talk about, but as Christians we have the belief, the hope, and the tools to process and work through our fear of death. We work hard at living life well, and I think that we need to work at dying well too and understanding that death is part of life.  

I often tell families that loved ones who are dying are birthing their way into new life with Christ. This is core to our understanding as Christians, that there is life beyond death with Christ. Someone called it to my attention that lots of people are excited about being reunited with their family and friends when they die, and kind of forget the meeting Jesus part.  When someone dies, we fear what life will be like without them and hope to see them again. In our grief, we sometimes forget that there is transformation and life that comes out of death in Christ. 

 During Diane Lane’s funeral I told a story about a water beetle by Doris Stickney to help her three young boys think about their mom’s transformation in Christ and life beyond this place.

Here’s the story:   "Once, in a little pond, in the muddy water under the lily pads, there lived a little water beetle in a community of water beetles. They lived a simple and comfortable life in the pond.  Once in a while, sadness would come to the community when one of the beetles would climb the stem of a lily pad and would never be seen again. They knew when this happened; their friend, had died and was gone forever.    

Then, one day, one little water beetle felt an irresistible urge to climb up that stem. However, she was determined that she would not leave forever. She would come back and tell her friends what she had found at the top.  When she reached the top and climbed out of the water onto the surface of the lily pad, she was so tired, and the sun felt so warm, that she decided she must take a nap.    

As she slept, her body changed and when she woke up, she had turned into a beautiful blue-tailed dragonfly with broad wings and a slender body designed for flying.    

So, fly she did! And, as she soared, and she saw the beauty of a whole new world that she had never known existed. Then she remembered her beetle friends and how they were thinking by now she was dead. She wanted to go back to tell them and explain to them that she was now more alive than she had ever been before.    

She had new life again rather than it ending. But her new body would not go down into the water. She could not get back to tell her friends the good news. Then she understood that their time would come but not for a long time, when they, too, would know what she now knew. So, she raised her wings and flew off into her joyous new life.”  

New life in Christ is something to celebrate and give us hope. My hope for you is that we hold on to and embrace the understanding that there is life beyond this world and most importantly not to forget Jesus in it all! Amen.