An Accident Killed My Friend|3 Questions I Asked Myself About Death

When I was thirteen, I went through a scary season of thinking I was going to die.  For example, I felt like a car would hit me any time while I walked on the roadside. When a spoon dropped, I jumped. The thought of dying tormented me for weeks.

But the fear disappeared the day I read this verse; “If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” (Romans 14:8)

That was then.

Now that I am nearly forty years with a wife and two daughters, death has a different meaning. The thought of death concerns me because I’m responsible for these wonderful ladies in my life.

Whenever I attend funerals, I’m reminded that one day, my body will be closed in a coffin, lowered into the ground, covered with soil and everyone will walk away and continue their normal lives.

At that moment, I’ll be with my Lord.

The not-so-good news is that none of us can escape that dreadful day.

And though a few of us like to think about that appointment or prepare for it, it’s unavoidable. The rich and poor, the educated and illiterate, the white and black – all have a time to be born and a time to die. (Ecclesiastes 3:2)

From the dust God made man, to the dust does he return. (Ecclesiastes 12:7)

And Job said,

“²³ One person dies in prosperity,
completely comfortable and secure,
²⁴ the picture of good health,
vigorous and fit.
²⁵ Another person dies in bitter poverty,
never having tasted the good life.
²⁶ But both are buried in the same dust,
both eaten by the same maggots.” (Job 21:23-26)

Death Of A Close Friend

I met Kalenzi at university. He was a very humble, godly and prayerful young man. After campus, he tried to get work but failed.

Later when he didn’t have a place to stay, he stayed with me. We ate together, prayed together and shared personal plans for marrying the girls we liked and building godly families.

A few months later, he told me God was telling him to prepare for a journey. He was to seek God more and keep his life pure. Because his brother lived abroad, we thought the brother would get him a job. He even applied for a passport and got it.

One Sunday evening, he left for prayers at his friend’s home. The next day at midnight, I received a call that a taxi had knocked Kalenzi and he had died on the spot.

I was too shocked to cry. I could not believe he was gone.

His family made burial arrangements and I took them some of his few belongings. Later, I collected his old stuff and burnt them. As I did, it occurred to me how we treasure the things we own but when we die, many of those things won’t mean much to those we leave them with. I learnt not to hold on to things tightly.

I’m grateful to God for preparing my friend for the journey. We didn’t understand what God was up to, but He knew his days were few and allowed him time to purify himself. We’ll meet again yonder!

How Did Death Come Into The World?

Every minute, about one hundred and six people die.[1] Someone somewhere in a hospital, home, roadside, war zone or forest is breathing their last.

God didn’t plan for man to die in the first place. That’s why He made the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden to keep mankind alive forever.

He told man,

“¹⁶But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—

¹⁷except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.” (Genesis 2:16-17)

When Adam chose to eat the forbidden fruit, death was unleashed on all mankind. God chased them out of the Garden lest they ate on the Tree of Life and lived forever in a sinful state. (Genesis 3:22-24) In the first few generations, man lived many years. Methuselah clocked 969 years. (Genesis 5:27) But because of more sin, God cut our years to 120, and then to 70.

Until now, death continues to devastate people through war, disease, murder, suicide and old age. And no matter how technologically advanced we get, man has to die as a consequence of man’s fall.

Learn more about why Christians are destined to suffer in the article ‘Where is God When It Hurts?|The 6 SOURCES, 10 REASONS & 12 RESPONSES Of Suffering

It’s quite interesting to observe how most people want to live long yet few follow the principles of living long like eating right, exercising and getting good rest. Others shorten their lives on drugs, alcohol, smoking and too much eating.

Did you know that lifestyle diseases like heart disease, obesity, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain cancers among others kill millions of people every year?

According to the UN, “By 2030, the proportion of total global deaths due to chronic diseases is expected to increase to 70 per cent and the global burden of disease to 56 per cent..”[2]

That said, life is still short compared to eternity. In the Bible, man’s life is described as a maggot or worm, breath, mist or vapour that appears for a little while and then disappears. (Psalms 144:4, Job 7:7, James 4:14).

Why Do People Fear To Die?

Death is scary and mysterious.

It’s normal to fear death, otherwise, we wouldn’t take precautions to prevent it. Fear of death or being harmed makes us look right and left before crossing the road, makes us lock all doors before going to sleep, helps us drive carefully on the road and take good care of our bodies.

But a healthy dose of fearing death is natural and appropriate.

The fear becomes destructive when it brings anxiety, depression and nightmares. For instance, in accidents and during pandemics or diagnosis of terminal diseases many people die faster due to fear of death than the issues they’re facing.

No Christian should go through life haunted by fear of death.

Why?

Because the Bible tells us to be anxious about nothing. Because Jesus promised to be with us until the end of the age. And because we’re sure of where we’re going.

People who go through near-death experiences describe it as being pulled out of a heavy jacket and finding themselves in another realm that’s more real than anything they’ve ever experienced. Most of the time, those who return never remain the same.

I know the thought of leaving our loved ones and this world is frightening. Life here is all we know and for some, it’s all they have because they have not secured their soul’s eternity for everlasting life. So, we don’t want to go. If it were possible to buy extra lives, people would save up for it day and night.

Another reason that makes death scary is how it will happen. Will it be a short or long illness, an accident on the road, sea or air? Some people go to bed and never wake up. Even growing up to be very old has its challenges.

Only God knows each person’s exit strategy!

And when that day comes, no one can escape it. An African proverb says, “The day the monkey is destined to die, all the trees get slippery.”

Other people fear death because they don’t know what lies on the other side. Nurses who take care of the dying say that some people exit peacefully while others die kicking and screaming as if experiencing torture and seeing horror.

Apostle Paul says, “And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27) Whether we like it or not, we shall all stand before God, some to damnation, others to reward.

This life isn’t all there is. There is something beyond death. If anything, life begins after death. That means the current life we are experiencing is preparation for eternity.

How we live here will determine where and how we spend our eternity.

Where Do People Go After Death?

People who hear and believe the true gospel of Jesus Christ, become God’s children. And when they die, the angels usher them into eternity and take them into God’s presence. (Luke 16:22)

Christians can’t begin to imagine the wonderful and unimaginable surprises awaiting them on the other side. If this fallen world can be beautiful, how much more heaven?

^“That is what the Scriptures mean when they say,

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

But it’s terrible for people who reject Jesus Christ and choose to live in sin. When they die, they join their father the devil in hell. (Matthew 25:43)

Jesus spoke about hell as a place of darkness, gnashing of teeth and weeping. (Matthew 8:12) It’s a place that burns with fire and sulphur, the fire never goes out. (Revelation 21:8. Also Mark 9:43) It’s a place of eternal punishment. (Matthew 25:46)

In another verse, Jesus says “⁴⁷And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out. It’s better to enter the Kingdom of God with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, ⁴⁸ ‘where the maggots never die and the fire never goes out.’ (Mark 9:47-48) That’s scary!

In other words, those who die without Christ will experience a second and eternal death in the lake of fire. (Revelations 20:14-15, 20:6) They’ll be forever separated from God.

This may seem unreal but who can question God and His dealings with His creation? Aren’t we the clay and He, the potter? Hasn’t He warned us?

Some believe God can’t send people to eternal torment in hell. Did God spare the families in Sodom and Gomorrah? Did God spare the billions of people who drowned in Noah’s time?

If we fully understood where the wicked go after death and the fury that awaits them in hell, we would cry out for mercy on their behalf and beseech our loved ones and everyone else to turn to God and be saved. Sadly, the world makes fun of hell and Satan blinds many to the grim reality of the place God prepared for him and his evil angels.

People casually say Rest In Peace to everyone who dies but as we’re learning, there is no peace for the wicked, even in death and eternity. (Isaiah 48:22)

Only Jesus the Prince of Peace can grant peace now and forever.

As Christians, we should be the most courageous and joyful human beings when facing death. We know who we are (citizens of heaven). We know whose we are. And we’re sure of where we’re going.

Death is simply the end of our assignment on earth and the beginning of a new life with God. For us, to die is gain, but to the world, to die is pain. (Philippians 1:21)

Blessed is the one who death finds ready. That’s the third article on this topic; 8 Ways To Prepare For Death & Eternity|Not Everyone Rests In Peace

In the next article, we shall discuss the 9 reasons why some people die before their time and how to overcome the fear of death in our lives.

Thank you for reading this article. I welcome your comments and questions – as iron sharpens iron, let’s sharpen each other.

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Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

[1] https://www.medindia.net/patients/calculators/world-death-clock.asp

[2] https://www.un.org/en/chronicle/article/lifestyle-diseases-economic-burden-health-services