A Funny Story — A Serious Thought
Several years ago, my mother was living in an assisted living home located very close to where Jim and I lived. It was wonderful because it allowed at least one of us to visit her almost every day.
On one particular day I went to visit her in the early afternoon and I could tell from how everyone was acting that something special was going on. I found Mom sitting in a little alcove just outside of her room and next to the beauty shop. Her hair had been done (even thought it wasn’t her regular day), and she had on one of her nicest outfits. Then I noticed that the beauty shop was full of other residents getting their hair done.
I asked one of the workers what was going on and she very excitedly told me that the governor of Kentucky was coming to visit one of the residents. She went on to tell me they were trying to get everyone looking their best for his visit.
I sat down beside mom and we began talking about different things. I then noticed that several of the administrators and their staff were lining up just down the hall from where we were sitting. They were watching the front door of the facility, so I asked them if he was coming in. They informed me that he was running late, but they wanted to be standing when he did arrive and they had asked everyone to stand as he entered.
They stood and waited for what seemed like a long time and then in a quiet moment Mom began singing (rather loudly) these words: “He’ll be comin’ round the mountain when he comes. He’ll be comin’ round the mountain when he comes. He’ll be comin’ round the mountain, he’ll be comin’ round the mountain, he’ll be comin’ round the mountain when he comes.”
When she stopped singing, all you could hear was laughter. When I finally recovered from laughing so hard, we went on with our visit, the governor came, and the rest is history.
It’s one of my favorite stories about Mom because even in the midst of dementia, she had had a funny thought, verbalized it, and gave me a memory I will cherish as long as I have my memory. Our family still laughs every time we tell that story, which we do often.
As I was thinking about this the other day, I had some serious thoughts based upon that story. They have to do with our daily lives – our time, our effort, our focus, our reputation, and our influence on those around us.
For whom are we preparing?
- If we spend time making ourselves presentable to those here on earth, do we spend time making ourselves presentable to God?
- Is our time spent trying to impress those around us, or do we spend time trying to please God?
- Do I want my speech, actions, and dress to gain attention and help me fit in with those here on earth, or do I want those things to be pleasing to God?
- Do I spend my time here on earth thinking about what’s going on around me, or do I make God first in my life?
The Lord is coming again. We should be preparing for His coming.
The beginning of the three stanzas of this beautiful song, “What Will Your Answer Be?” written by Tillit S. Teddlie in 1935, beautifully summarizes my serious thoughts from a funny story:
Some day you’ll stand at the bar on high,
Some day your record you’ll see;
Sadly, you’ll stand if you’re unprepared,
Trembling you’ll fall on your knee;
Now is the time to prepare, my friend,
Make your soul spotless and free;
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AUTHOR: Donna Faughn
