I love my family a lot. I mean, I am crazy about them, so crazy about them that I love living life with them. I get to watch them grow, I get to teach them so many things, I get to see what they are truly passionate about and what makes them struggle. But I love them so much that we did what we all dread and fear to do and that is wrote our will.
My husband and I are leaving the country and our children are staying behind with some dear and trusted friends. This will be the first time we leave our children in a country that we are not from and with people who are not family. It is a bit scary to be honest. Not to mention that we live in the zone just waiting to have the next big earthquake and it is fire season. With all that, we are leaving them, and we decided that the smartest and most loving thing was to make sure that they were taken care of if the worse was to happen and mom and dad don’t come home.
Writing the will
This isn’t the first time we wrote a will, but we needed to update. There is no scripture verse that says, “The Lord commandeth you to make a will and buy life insurance.” It probably would be a lot easier if it did and people did it out of obligation to the Lord. What we find instead are some principles that we can use to apply to this situation. In the 1st book of Timothy chapter 5 verse 8 says, “But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” Here it is referring to those of us that are still alive, we are to take care of our family as even nonbelievers do that, but I think this could also be loosely applied to after death. You want to make sure that your wishes for your family, fortune, possessions, gifts that the Lord has given to you are kept so that those that are still alive can be taken care of and used in a way that is God honoring. We have been called to be stewards of what we have, and I see that applies to us going to the grave as well, so that the gifts the Lord has given us aren’t wasted away.
We are not guaranteed tomorrow.
While doing up our will, part of me wanted to cry and run away. I don’t want someone else to raise my family, for no one is good enough for that, I want to keep that job. I don’t want to talk about the worst case scenario for my kids. But I need to remember that God knows best and He is in control of that department and we have to trust in His sovereignty, that He works all things for the glory of His name. The Lord knows our days before one even came to be, and boy it would be so much easier if we knew that life clock and were like ok I am good for a while, or oh no I need to get ready; but we don’t. We are to plan for the future not knowing if those days are for us or not. Talking about our deaths doesn’t mean that we won’t die nor does it mean that we will live. Give each day to the Lord, thank him for the amount He has given us.
Plan today so your family is prepared for tomorrow
Tell people about your wishes. If you are planning on having someone take care of your children when you die, tell your family this so that it isn’t added to the burden of your passing. Share with the members of your family what your wishes are and why. Be honest now, rather than they find out after your death and have a lot of resentment towards you that they can never talk to you about. My mom used to work in a bank and I remember the horror stories that she told about the divisions and shock in family over the will. If your sibling is a drunk and you don’t let them take care of your children for the night while you are on earth why on earth would you let them raise your children for a lifetime. Think about the consequences of what happens if you were to leave a huge gift to a family member, would it be a blessing or a burden? So, in the spirit of keeping the peace, be open about how things are going to go down when you are gone so that way no one is surprised or bitter. Give your things away for the glory of God.
We need to talk about death
Death is coming. We just don’t know when it is our time. We, those who know Christ, don’t need to wallow in fear, rather we can celebrate that death will bring us finally into the presence of the king. Talk to your family about what won’t be in heaven: no suffering, sorrow or sickness. For the believer, death should be comforting not a thing of fear. This is also where we can share with our unbelieving friends and family about the reassurance we have in Christ and that we desire that for them. Use our conversations about our last will and testaments to proclaim the gospel truth. Death isn’t our end, it is the start of the best part. If you haven’t written a will, I suggest you look into the local rules and maybe even do one in your own writing today.
Genevieve Wilson is a happily married home-schooling mum of 3, whose passion is to see people come to know Jesus. She is a seminary wife to her amazing husband.