What I Learned from Shirley
December 10, 2009
The Christian’s relationship to this world is one of the great paradoxes of the faith. On the one hand, this world was created by God and deemed to be “very good.” Even after the fall, God continued his love for his creation, most poignantly displayed by entering into it as the God-man Jesus. Rather than obliterating corrupted flesh, God chose to redeem it, and one day will spread the power of the resurrection throughout the whole physical creation, thus creating a new heavens and a new earth (Isaiah 65:17, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1).
On the other hand, because the world is currently corrupted by rebellion against God, we as God’s children can not feel at home in the current state of affairs. The New Testament authors speak of Christians as “sojourners and exiles” (1 Peter 2:11) whose “citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20) such that “here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14). Hence the follower of Jesus must walk somewhat of a fine line. We appreciate the physical creation that God is redeeming while not allowing our hearts to feel at home in the world as it is.
Shirley Novkov, who left for the place of her true citizenship on Monday morning, helped me tremendously by reinforcing the sojourning, exile nature of our relationship with this world. She experienced the brokenness of this world both relationally, as she lost her husband Milt more than 5 years ago, and physically, as she suffered intensely from Parkinson’s disease. This positioning made Shirley quite eager for her lasting city. I spoke to her at length a few times over the last 6 months, and she had a striking poise about her as she embraced her own mortality and set her sights on a world defined by resurrection.
Perhaps you are in a similar stage of life, where the loss of loved ones and the declining health of your body position you to lean into the life to come with diminishing regrets for leaving this life. Or perhaps you are young, full of vigor, and excitedly engaged in the affairs of work, family, society, entertainment, politics, and all that makes up life on this earth. If I learned nothing else from Shirley, I learned that we need each other in the body of Christ. We who think toward the end of our lives in months or years need reminders from the young that this world is a place God is redeeming, not merely a sinking ship to be abandoned. Even more significantly, we who are young and entrenched in this life need those who are finishing the race to remind us that “the present form of this world is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31) and not to get too settled in.
May God continue to help us appreciate and bless one another across generational lines as we seek to live as God’s people in this world together. I know that I am thankful for the way in which Shirley impacted me, and look forward to being with her again in that lasting city.
Pastor Chris