Monday, August 14

Untimely

I received a call from one of my sisters this afternoon, asking me if I was watching the news. She went on to tell me that a guy I grew up with (at least in my teenage years) had been shot and killed last night. He was found dead in the parking lot of an apartment complex about 5 minutes from where we grew up. Ernest Spears (or "Eazy", as he was known by) was 37 years old... I hadn't seen E in over 10 years. My sister would see him every once in awhile... and would always forget to get his phone number for me. As far as I know, E wasn't a Christ-follower.

After I began seriously following Christ in 1989, my family moved from the apartment complex (Belford Towers in Takoma Park, MD) where I grew up... and I didn't see E quite as often. In fact, because of my "radical" (read that: pompous) change, I tried to stay away from my friends who weren't "saved like me." I've often regretted that decision - now that I'm older and know better - and I wish I had another opportunity to reestablish my friendship with E and some of my other friends who have died (or have been killed).

Eazy, myself and Marcel ("Marco") were inseparable in our later teen years. In fact, you would probably laugh at pictures of me and Marco, dressed like we were Tubbs and Crockett (no, I wasn't Tubbs!!) from Miami Vice (we had better names, though... "Harlan and Quest"... don't ask). Eaze was always his own man, though... too "rough and rugged" to be caught in a Miami Vice-like, pastel-colored jacket, white pants, and espadrilles! But he was always a fun-loving guy... liked to laugh (alot)... and liked to live hard... He was from NYC (East Bronx), and was my official introduction to RUN-DMC!! (ok... I'm old) The Eazy that I remember had a lot of dreams... He wanted to own his own business... I don't know how close he came to fulfilling those dreams. I would hear bits and pieces over the years about what he was up to. Some okay; some not so okay. I don't know if E ever fulfilled any of his dreams... one thing is for sure: I know he didn't get as far as he wanted.

The Bible says that our lives our like "the morning fog - it's here a little while, and then it's gone" (James 4:14). If E knew he had an appointment with death on last night, maybe he would've made some better life choices. Maybe... I don't know. All I know is that he can't redo his life. None of us can. The Bible says that "each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). We have one shot at this thing called "life," and then we have to give an account to God for how we lived here on earth. One shot... that's it. No one wants to leave this planet at 37 years old... but none of us are promised long life... and the last time I checked, death was batting 1.000... humanity has a 100% death rate! Death is a certainty for all of us, but we have to prepare to leave this earth; we have to have our eternal destiny settled before checking out of here... and, since we don't know when our "check-out" time is, it makes sense that making certain where we will spend eternity would be of the utmost priority.

The Bible is clear that God has only given us ONE WAY to prepare for life after death - and that is to have a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus. If you've never accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior - your Forgiver and Leader - you can do that today... DON'T WAIT!!! Tomorrow is definitely not promised...

Maybe my buddy Eazy made the decision to follow Christ since I'd last seen him... maybe... I don't know... I pray that he did. But, for sure, your maybe can change to "I know for certain"... and it can change today. If you'd like to have a "fresh start" in life, to have your slate wiped clean and begin to follow Christ, click here to find out how. I'd love to personally hear from you if you've made that decision, or if you have questions...

Awaiting your response...

For Christ Alone,
D

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