Charisa Stories

Tag: eternity

  • Don’t Blink


    As I celebrated birthday number 70 last week a song fired up from Kenny Chesney. In the lyrics an interviewer asks a man celebrating his one hundred and second birthday about his secret to life. His response?

    Don’t blink

    He talks about how life seems to be a blink from childhood to reaching the century mark. I’m still a ways from the century mark though my shoulder feels that old this morning. It seems like just yesterday that I was playing sandlot baseball as a kid. Moments ago I was in high school being Attention Deficit before ADD was cool. Just yesterday I met the stunning Joni Banks and somehow talked her into dating me. Wasn’t it just weeks ago that three adorable baby boys came into our lives?

    Don’t blink.

    Married almost 47 years. Five decades of directing live TV sporting events. Seven grandchildren. Are you kidding me?

    I have had, if I may borrow the franchise of Frank Capra, a wonderful life. Through it all I feel blessed beyond comprehension. I believe that is because I found my reason for being here. Pastor and author Rick Warren summed it up nicely in a recent interview.

    People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond, In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven. One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body – but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillion of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act, the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn’t going to make sense.

    Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you’re just coming out of one or you’re getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that’s not the goal of life: The goal is to grow in character, In Christ-likeness.

    If this is the warm-up act for my eternity gig on the main stage then all of this is merely preparation. Football players hate the two-a-day practices in the brutal heat. But they love the exhilaration of victory that the difficult preparation allows for later in the season. Sometimes the two-a-days of life seem cruel and without purpose. But my understanding of the God who made me and His purpose for me allows me to believe there is purpose and design. I don’t always see it. I love being happy and carefree. But if my purpose is preparation for my real gig then I need to live out of my new identity and trust God to mature me in Christ-likeness. Paul wrote this in the book of Colossians.

    Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. (Col 3, NLT)

    The lyrics quote the wide old man telling others how to finish strong.

    I was glued to my TV when it looked like he looked at me and said
    “Best start putting first things first.”
    Cause when your hourglass runs out of sand
    You can’t flip it over and start again
    Take every breath God gives you for what it’s worth

    The songwriter is correct. We have a pre-determined number of grains in the hourglass so I choose today to live in the moment in grace and freedom. Every breath is a gift even on the toughest days. Enjoy today. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow is not promised.

    In no time at all on the eternity clock I will be with my Lord and Savior. I will be home. For my fellow sojourners I pray that you will trust that truth. You may face storms and deep valleys along the way. The secret to life? Trust a God who is trustworthy. And one more thing.

    Don’t blink. His blessings are all around you.

  • I Know Who Holds Tomorrow

    I miss my Dad. It was over nineteen years ago that he passed into eternity with Jesus. I still find myself wishing I could share good news with him.

    I wish he could have seen how his grandsons in Texas have grown up to be godly and good men. I wish he could have seen how his daughter-in-law trusted God as she faced down cancer. I wish he could have seen how his son finally began to understand how to live in the amazing grace of Jesus. I wish I could have told him that his example gave me a foundation for how the grace of God is possible. If my flawed earthly father could love me that much and without condemnation, then I can begin to understand how my merciful Heavenly Father can love me despite my junk and flaws. Not every man can say that about his earthly father and I am grateful that I can.

    I often think of him when I watch or read the news. The current division in Washington and the selfish agendas of our “representatives” would have driven him nuts. I could almost hear him ranting about the politicians and how we just need someone with “some uneducated good old common sense” in our Nation’s Capital. He earned the right to rant. He was one of the incredible men and women who served our country during World War II. The flag from his military funeral is one of my proudest possessions. 

    I find myself becoming my Dad more and more each day and that is not a bad thing at all. Sometimes I dial up his music as emotional comfort food. I can’t listen to more than an hour of Willie’s Roadhouse on Sirrius/XM radio without a song generating a memory of him. But it is the Gospel songs that really make me think about my wonderful reunion someday.

    Today I listened to one of my Dad’s favorite Gospel songs and felt comfort wash over my soul. The song is called “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow” and it was written in 1950 by a traveling preacher named Ara Stanphill. This is a song of trust written during a time of agony and doubt in the songwriter’s life. Stanphill’s wife battled addiction and left him for other men. You could imagine the gossip that flew in that era when a preacher’s wife left to live a life of promiscuity. Yet Stanphill forgave her, tried to reconcile and remained true to his vows. But he was human, and he suffered depression and grief. He wondered why God would allow such a fate for a man dedicated to His service. One day he was feeling sorry for himself as he drove. In the book Turn Your Radio On author Ace Collins relates the struggle that Stanphill faced. In the depths of his sadness he began to hum a tune and the next thing he knew he was singing a song. He sang about not knowing what was in the future but knowing that God was with him every step of the way. He rushed to his piano when he arrived at his office and jotted down the words.  I remember hearing Faron Young sing these lyrics on a scratchy vinyl record growing up.

    I don’t know about tomorrow;
    I just live from day to day.
    I don’t borrow from its sunshine
    For its skies may turn to grey.

    I don’t worry o’er the future,
    For I know what Jesus said.
    And today I’ll walk beside Him,
    For He knows what is ahead.

    Many things about tomorrow
    I don’t seem to understand
    But I know who holds tomorrow
    And I know who holds my hand.

    I believe those words. I don’t know why some things happen. I get frustrated and deeply concerned about what is going on in our country and the world. But at the end of the day I put my hope not in politics or the culture but in Jesus. I know who holds tomorrow and I know who holds my hand. And then I listened to what I would guess was my Dad’s favorite song. He would sing along loudly and I remember that I also inherited my Dad’s lack of singing talent. But his heart believed the words that Red  Foley and the Sunshine Boys sang.

    Well, I’m tired and so weary
    But I must go along
    Till the lord will come and call, call me away, 
    Well the morning’s so bright
    And the Lamb is the light
    And the night, night is as black as the sea, 

    There will be peace in the valley for me, some day
    There will be peace in the valley for me, oh Lord I pray
    There’ll be no sadness, no sorrow, my Lord,
    no trouble, trouble I see
    There will be peace in the valley for me

    My Dad is experiencing that today. No more sadness, no sorrow, no troubles. In the midst of craziness and confusion I hold on to the hope that my Dad believed. I know who holds tomorrow and I know there will be peace in the valley for me some day. More and more I understand the words that C.S.Lewis wrote.

    “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”

    That is what Jesus was saying as He comforted His followers with these words recorded in the Gospel of John. 

    “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”

    It is going to be okay. I know who holds tomorrow.

  • Savoring My Walk “Home” Celebration

    I recently recalled a comment one of my colleagues made during a meeting. I was joking about my age and remarked that I was no doubt well into the fourth quarter of my life. He said with a smile “you may be in sudden death overtime! I laughed and agreed. Later I thought about how accurate that exchange could be. One big change in my reaction to that possibility is I no longer dread the prospect of my time ending.


    One of my favorite authors, Randy Alcorn, gets right to the heart of the matter.

    “Many Christians dread the thought of leaving this world. Why? Because so many have stored up their treasures on earth, not in heaven. Each day brings us closer to death. If your treasures are on earth, that means each day brings you closer to losing your treasures.”

    I believe so many of my treasures are in heaven. My dad, my mom, my nephew Dean, and my beloved grandmother are among the many people who have gone ahead of me and whom I long to see there. My daughter, Katie, is waiting for me. So many dear friends have transitioned to eternal life with Jesus. What will that experience be like?

    It brought to mind a moment from my television directing career with the Texas Rangers that might offer a glimpse of my heavenly reunion someday. It was a sports director’s dream moment. The Rangers had many “walk-off” wins during my tenure, scoring the winning run in the last at bat at home. When a game is over, both teams walk off the field but with very different body languages.

    In this particular game against the Los Angeles Angels, the score was tied in the bottom of the ninth with two outs on the board. Rangers’ catcher Geovany Soto was at the plate. I was in a TV truck that had dozens of monitors filled with camera shots, graphics, and replay sources. I orchestrated the broadcast from my seat in front of a huge bank of camera monitors, communicating by headset to camera operators what to do next. I selected a shot from the monitors in front of me, and the technical director pushed a button that put it “on the air,” instantaneously sending it into your home.

    I scanned the monitors, focusing on Soto’s intense concentration. The Angels’ closer was trying to send a tie game into extra innings. The Ranger players were hanging on the dugout rail, hoping that Soto would come through. The count went full. Two outs. And then it happened. The ball was driven deep to left field. The Ranger players started to jump up and down as the ball headed toward the stands, then left the park. Pandemonium ensued inside the park.

    Ranger players Elvis Andrus, Adrian Beltre, and others leapt over the rail and sprinted toward home plate to greet the hero of the moment. Soto rounded third, flipped his helmet in the air with joy, and sprinted toward a throng of teammates encircling home plate. They were smiling and waiting anxiously for Soto to get “home” so they could celebrate. As he neared home plate, Soto made a gigantic leap and disappeared into the dogpile of teammates. What a picture. That is the drama of sports. Even the apostle Paul used sports as an analogy for spiritual things.

    I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings. Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 

    1 Corinthians 9:23-25

    I reflected on that passage and the thrilling finish of that Rangers-Angels game. As electrifying as it was, that victory is nothing compared to holding the eternal prize that will not fade away when I finish this earthly race. I began to imagine my heavenly homecoming and how it might resemble that “walk-off” moment. I saw myself rounding third and heading toward all of the loved ones who had gone ahead, the joy of their faces compelling me to run faster. I jumped into a dogpile of dear friends and family who had shared my journey. When I finally emerged from the ecstatic group, I saw Jesus. He hugged me warmly. I was safe at home. 




  • What Would My Last Message Be?

    What Would My Last Message Be?

    When I was a little boy I remember the standard prayer at bedtime. I know it was meant to comfort but one line always freaked me out.

    Now I lay me down to sleep.

    I pray the Lord my soul to keep.

    If I should die before I wake,

    Wait? What? If I should die before I wake? I think I will just stay awake for awhile thank you very much.

    Six decades later that prayer makes a lot more sense. If I should die before I wake I believe I will be in the presence of Jesus. I am not anxious to leave this life but I am not afraid.

    I talked about loss in my book Stay: Lessons My Dogs Taught Me about Life, Loss, and Grace. I wrote that “preparing for death is preparing for life,” a principle that has radically changed my perspective. The corollary truth is when you are not afraid to die you are not afraid to live. Recognizing how finite my existence is allows me to live in the moment and enjoy God’s tender mercies every morning. I am forgiven so I don’t have to live in regret of the past. He is in control so I don’t have to live in fear of the future. I can live right now in freedom and peace.

    The other thing I ponder is what message would I like to communicate as my final word? I have been blessed with some wonderful friends and colleagues who would likely say some nice things about me. I would like them to understand a very important truth. I learned some great lessons from my Dad and others as I was growing up. But I can tell you with complete assurance that my life would have likely gone off the rails without my relationship with Jesus. His love both restrained and sustained me. I believe my insecure and selfish heart would have taken me down a different path without my faith. Any quality that you find positive in my life has been given or enhanced through my relationship with Jesus. Anytime I have disappointed or did not show love it was because I took my eyes off of Him.

    Paul writes these words in Philippians.

    8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you. (Philippians 4, NLT)

    I would like to paraphrase Paul’s words for my final message.

    “And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. I hope you saw in my life some things that were true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Whatever you might have received from me grew out of the sustaining love, grace, and peace of God.”

    I know my heart. I know the crossroads I came to in different seasons of my life and how God gracefully and lovingly rescued me over and over. So my final message to my believing friends would be one of encouragement and hope.

    Trust God and trust who He says you are because of the finished work of Jesus. Believe you are forgiven of all sins past, present, and future. Wholly accept that you are a brand new creation and live in grateful freedom. Drink in the inexhaustible grace of God every day. Allow God to love you as His beloved and then pay that love forward for His glory. Look through the lens of grace and you will find sacred moments in every single day. Recognize that everything about your walk with Jesus is a gift of grace. It is all about the finished work of Jesus on the Cross. At the moment you believe that Jesus is the way to salvation you are gifted with everything you need to live for Him.

    Forgiveness.
    Security.
    The Spirit of God dwelling in your heart.
    A new identity.
    The hope of eternity with Jesus.
    Grace and love that is completely unrelated to your performance.

    Those gifts make me want to serve God out of gratitude and not out of begrudging compliance to avoid judgment.

    For my friends who don’t share my faith I would ask one favor. Don’t focus on Christians who fail. Focus on Christ who succeeded.

    Jesus conquered death. He paid for your sins. I would ask you to examine the impact of Jesus on His culture. It was the message of Christ that gave value to women, children, the poor, and the ignored. When you study His words and life you will see that many of His followers have fallen short, including me. Jesus also taught that some would claim to be His followers who were not in any way known to Him. Those counterfeiters get lumped in with true followers.

    So my final request would come out of deep love for you. Examine the claims of Jesus with an open heart and mind. Don’t reject Christ because of Christians. That is an easy thing to do. Read the Gospel of John and ask for the Spirit to reveal truth to you. If you choose to reject the claims of Jesus I would sadly accept that decision. If I am wrong about my eternal destiny I would still have no regrets about the way the teachings of Jesus influenced my life. I would do it all over again.

    I can’t force you to follow Jesus. I hope I can be a small influence for you to thoughtfully and honestly examine the life and claims of Jesus. Following Jesus changed everything in my journey. I would not be a good and loving friend if I did not share that with you.