minutes to live - Page 2

juantoo3 · 06-03-2005, 04:44 AM

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I'm not a hard ass...I'm just drawn that way.

OOOPS! Where's that darn eraser...

Quahom1 · 06-03-2005, 04:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by juantoo3

OOOPS! Where's that darn eraser...

Ouch!

path_of_one · 06-03-2005, 05:54 PM

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Originally Posted by Faithfulservant

Are you in the medical field, Path?

i havent been exposed to much death.. I was 12 when my dad died and my grandfather had a peaceful passing a year and a half ago and a dear friend of my family who passed a little before that told the Doctor "no more" when she had had enough kidney dialysis she was ready to be with the Lord.. thats pretty much the extent of my experience.

No. Before I decided to become a cultural anthropologist, however, I was in biomedical sciences and intending to be a surgeon. So I did a lot of volunteer work in a local hospice and an emergency room. I haven't seen a lot of death compared to most who stayed in those fields, but I saw more variety than many, I'd wager. Around the same time I took a course in Religious Studies called simply "Death," and it was very helpful in my understanding of how different religions understand death, their practices, and individual responses to the process. During this course, I was working for hospice, lost my grandfather to stomach cancer, and my brother-in-law to suicide. My grandfather, thankfully, died peacefully at home in hospice care; my brother-in-law's death was the tragic end of years of depression and physical pain that he could no longer bear. My hospice ladies varied between those who were heart-breakingly ready to die and physically unable to pass over, and those who were desperately scared of the process. I tried to give comfort and love where I could. I will be forever grateful for sharing their dying processes with them, for hearing them describe their slow process of going in and out of this world and the next, despite how hard it was emotionally for me. They, and my grandfather, had the time to live between worlds for a while, on the threshold, and it was a profound gift to share such an experience, albeit second-hand. This contrasted so greatly with the traumatic deaths I had seen in the ER and with my brother-in-law, in which folks had little or no time to transition and process the experience. I sometimes sense spirits, and I could sense the confusion, the grief of some of these unfortunate folks. I can sense sometimes the anxiety and fear of living folks when they contemplate death, even those who profess to be going to heaven. Death is a difficult thing for some, no matter their beliefs, while for others it is a welcome transition, even if they don't know where they are going. At least, that is my observation.

Q, I appreciated your eloquent words and I wholeheartedly agree. My experience has been that time for the dying, and of course for God, is not the same as time for us. I spoken to people who had near-death experiences who said that time seemed to stop, to accelerate, to decelerate... that eternity was held in an instant at times. This resonates with my own experiences when I've been out of body, though I have never died. I have heard accounts from hospice nurses of atheist patients suddenly being with angels, and I believe them. I truly believe all time stops and eternity begins when one turns toward God and is embraced by the Divine.

Quahom1 · 06-03-2005, 08:43 PM

All time stops when we turn to God...

Isn't that the truth!

v/r

Q

Faithfulservant · 06-04-2005, 09:50 PM

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BTW Faithful, I'm not a hard ass...I'm just drawn that way.

I do know that if I was ever in a situation like that... that I would ask that God use me.. I do not think there is anything more comforting than the words of Christ.. to me anyways.

This IS something that happened to me.. I was on my way to work and I went a different way that I never normally would have gone because I had to pick something up.. when I pulled into the parking lot I saw an ambulance the EMT's were hovered over a lady and there was another lady laying next to her. Normally I wouldnt go near them because they do not need "lookers" crowding the area but I couldnt move I felt compelled to stand there and I felt even more compelled to pray.. they loaded the woman into the ambulance and I saw the other lady getting in her truck and I just walked towards her without thinking about it.. Im not an agressive person and would not normally do things like this.. I asked the woman in the truck that lady's name and that I felt compelled to pray for her and if she could tell me what happened and she flat out asked me if I was a spirit filled Christian and I said yes ma'am she grabbed my hand and prayed with me.. then we praised God for getting us together to pray. The woman in the ambulance was her Aunt and she had collapsed in the store and passed out and it had happened a few times recently. Interesting I saw this same lady at the bank a year later and I approached her and she also remembered me and told me that they did tests and could find nothing wrong with her aunt and she had not had any other occurances since that day.

I began my day with bible study and prayer and I asked God to please use me for His work. I know that He directed me to that place for intercessory prayer with that lady in the truck.. Thats why I believe that He guides people into situations to do His work. If that stabbed man needed someone who could do CPR to save His life... I do not believe that would be me.. If He directed me to someone that seeked the words of Christ or prayer ... Well I would know it was God.. and that the Spirit would speak through me.

Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."

Quahom1 · 06-04-2005, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Faithfulservant

...If that stabbed man needed someone who could do CPR to save His life... I do not believe that would be me.. If He directed me to someone that seeked the words of Christ or prayer ... Well I would know it was God.. and that the Spirit would speak through me.

Matthew 18:20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."

To everything, there is a purpose...under heaven.

v/r

Q

Blessed87 · 06-17-2005, 02:42 PM

I agree with Faithfulservant on this one. If a person does not come to Christ until the end, yes, there is little of their life that gave Christ honor, but they are with Him, not separated, if they have opened the door of their heart. I don't know if anyone has heard of the Share Jesus Without Fear....method(??don't know what to call it!), but that's what I'd do. First pray of course, then probably share a few Scriptures, at least John 3:16 ask these questions:
Are you a sinner? Do you want forgiveness? Do you believe Jesus Christ died on the cross for you and rose again? Are you ready to surrender your life to Him? Are you ready to invite Jesus into your life and into your heart?

If they answered yes to all, I'd lead them to pray to God basically what they agreed to in the questions. Eternity is a big deal, beyond our comprehension. It's worth it to try to aid them in coming to Jesus. The only way people can come is if the Spirit has led them, so we aren't doing much except being a tool for Jesus' work.

foreversearching · 06-17-2005, 05:50 PM

What an interesting question! Firstly, I would obviously do everything I could to save their life. If there was nothing anyone could do and death was iminent, then I would first put myself in thier place - what would I want to hear? I wouldn't want to hear somebody quoting the bible at me, no matter how much this person believes in it, and I would also want them to take into account that I might not be Christian (I am this is just for example sake).

What I would do is share some of my personal experiences with the dying person that have shown me that death is not the end, and that have been my personal proof that there is a God and that my loved ones who have died are okay. That way, no matter what this person is, even atheist, my words wouldn't be of offence to them because they are unique personal experiences that have provided me with personal proof, then the person can take them or leave them.
Hope that makes sense.

mynameisstephen · 06-17-2005, 08:57 PM

What I never anticapated was the difference in peoples views of where that person spends eternity if they die without Christ

I believe that if a person dies without repenting of thier sin and puting thier Faith in the Lord and Saviour Jesus then thier destination is Hell

so I would not be telling the person life stories and to be honest I would not care what they personally believe. I would be pleading with that person to beg God for mercy and beg that person to ask God for the forgivness He offers through the shed blood of Christ. Remember eternity is forever and I dont want anyone to spend it in Hell

but as some say here this is just my belief so take it how you will

your brother in Christ
Stephen

InLove · 06-17-2005, 09:05 PM

Peace...

Much of the time, there is no time or opportunity for all of that, Stephen. Sometimes--in fact, most of the time, there is only time for shared love in the Spirit. One is likely to be more educated by the person who is dying, than the other way around.

I love you, even though I really do not know you, in a sense--only telling you what I know through experience.

InPeace,
InLove

mynameisstephen · 06-17-2005, 11:26 PM

thanks, Inlove I love you to I see you like painting, I dabble a bit myself, i have sold over 250 prints of my water colours

InLove · 06-17-2005, 11:42 PM

Hi, Peace to All,

Hi Stephen--I would like to say there are lots of paintings here on my end. But I am still learning. The one painting I have any connection with is a painting that turned out to be a self-portrait. I have quite a collection of LP Art--don't know how many people know what that means--but it is art on the covers of vinyl recordings (that is the best I can explain it). Much of it is so entirely cool--I loved the art (both music and painting) of a woman (commercial name=Joni Mitchell). She and I do not see eye to eye in matters of the Spirit, but I still know her, anyway. I took a small corner of one of her paintings, and I guess, I was going to try and copy it or something, but it just came out as me, in a different way. It is my self-portrait.

Anyway, what was the question?

InPeace,
InLove

InLove · 06-18-2005, 12:06 AM

Peace--

By the way, Stephen, I have a feeling that you appreciate your name's sake. I would, if I were you. I have one, also. Stephen was all about faith. I know you know that you can read about it in the Word of God.

InPeace,
InLove

InLove · 06-20-2005, 04:26 AM

Hi--ummm, Stephen?

Just wanted to say I did not mean to derail the thread. I was in a hurry on Friday whan I made some posts (I am trying to learn not to post in a hurry. I do not know when I am going to learn this--maybe I already have, this time. There are only so many chances I will give myself before I give up!

)

Got out-of-town and computer-free for a couple of days. Amazing what a difference it makes. (I had to force myself to get back on here, but I knew I needed to come see the damage I had done before I left.)

Maybe we should start an art thread or something--people could send in pics or just describe stuff--I don't know--here I go again, getting in a hurry....

.

InPeace,
InLove