“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT))
Billy Graham would have turned 100 years old on November 7. I remember the day he passed away. It was earlier this year on February 21st. Hearing the news around 10am, I reflected on how he had impacted my life and only scratched the surface on the depth of the legacy he left behind. Surely the full impact of his servant’s heart cannot be measured until God gives the final number. Billy led with a humble posture, one that gave me my first glimpse into what it meant to speak the truth in love.
When Billy’s wife, Ruth, passed in June 2007, I learned that both her and Billy’s caskets had been purchased as a gift from their son, Franklin. He had purchased them after one of his ministry visits to Angola, formerly the Louisiana State Penitentiary.
Angola is America’s largest maximum-security penitentiary. This is a prison where 97% of the inmates will die while serving their life sentences. Because of this reality, the prison warden started Angola’s hospice care and elevated their carpentry classes to include building coffins. He also expanded the education and work training programs and required inmates to practice spirituality or a religion. One of the ministries he partnered with was Billy Graham Ministries.
When Franklin visited the carpentry shop, he saw the skill of the craftsmen and watched them work with pride. The caskets were simple with plain trim and only a single wooden cross as adornment. The lining was a mattress pad in both the top and bottom.
Franklin was quoted as having said something along the lines of, “My father is a simple man sharing a simple message, and he would want to be laid to rest in a simple casket.” Each casket cost $215 and Franklin refused the offer of using a higher-grade wood.
While several men assisted with building the caskets, three specific men were credited. At Franklin’s request, their names were burned into the wood of both caskets. Richard Liggett the designer, and master craftsmen Clifford Bowman and Paul Krolowitz. Richard and Clifford were serving life sentences for murder, and Paul was serving more than 30 years for armed robbery.
These were men who used their hands to kill, steal, and destroy, yet they were transformed into new creatures when they experienced the unrelenting love of the Father. Now they used their hands to skillfully craft one-of-a-kind wooden caskets for two of God’s elect. Not favorite, but elect—as in one who receives the call to live a life as a true testimony to who God is.
How many times have we been in need of a do-over? We find ourselves in a crisis, so we cry out for God to restore us. We ask Him to give us another chance at what we used to have. The good news is that the God of the Holy Bible is in the business of restoration. The better news is that He does not want to give us what we had; He wants to give us what He intended for us to have!
Think about that! You don’t have to settle for what you used to have; you can receive what God has planned for you to have! It will be better than you can imagine or think to ask for and it will be something that brings you alive and satisfies you deep within.
He wants to love us through the transition to repair what is broken. He promises to hold our hands and walk right through the middle of the chaos and confusion, as He smooths the way with His peace and protection.
If you’ve taken what Christ did on the cross and made it personal to you, then you are a new creature. There has been a transition in your being where the Holy Spirit has awakened the spirit inside you. He begins to breathe new life into your future, showing you a better way of living, making decisions, and relating to people. If you lean in close to His heart, you’ll learn how to align your soul with His spirit and truth, and that’s when a deep, peaceful contentment reigns in your life.
NOW LIVE LOVED and THRIVE!
These questions are in no way a substitute for healthcare professionals or any level of professional counseling. I’m an advocate for taking care of oneself mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. These questions reflect my heart, NOT my profession.
This questionnaire is an opportunity to journal your thoughts and feelings. It can serve as a launching pad on which to evaluate your heart condition as you understand it. My hope is that you will take what you discover and hold it up to the Light to evaluate it against who God says you are.
- Has there ever been a time when you’ve asked God to restore what you used to have?
- Did you really want what you had, or did you want to experience God’s original intention (plan) for that situation/relationship, etc.?
- What do you think God’s heart intention (plan) was/is for your situation?
- What are some of the ways we can miss out on what God intends for us?
- What is the difference between God’s intention for us (in any area of our lives) vs what we grab up for ourselves?
Use God’s word to take control over traumas in your life. Whenever you feel terrorized by your thoughts, take them captive by replacing them with the truth of God’s promises found in His word.
Print, then cut and carry this Scripture with you and/or post it in places where you will see it often. Ground yourself in God’s truths not Satan’s attacks. Encourage your heart and mind every time you are reminded of His great love for YOU!
Here is what God’s word says to encourage you and to give you an example of His unfailing, relentless, unending love for you:
“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)
When you read God’s word say to yourself: When I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior I am immediately a new person. The spirit of Jesus wakes my spirit and begins to teach me about my Heavenly Father. My old ways and my sins (past, present, future) have been overcome by the love and power of what Jesus did on the cross. I have access to the thrown room of God!
Now LIVE LOVED and THRIVE!
