A Good Word on Our Sojourn

(ROCKWALL, TX — February 12, 2018) What is a sojourn? I know what a journey is. It’s going from here to there, arriving. Anticipation is involved; planning. The journey may be difficult, but the goal is getting there, the destination you’ve dreamed about.

A sojourn however is a temporary stay, a stop-over. We, however, live our lives as if this is it, permanence. We’re surprised by change. We’re overwhelmed with a call from the doctor. Death shatters us. Decline leaves us depressed. We’ve ignored so many reminders that from the dust of the earth we came, and to the dust of the earth we will return.

“For God knows us inside out; He is mindful that we are but dust. As for man, his days are like grass; as a flower of the field, so he flourishes. But a storm snuffs him out just as quickly, and he is no more, leaving little to show he were here.” Psalm 103:14-16

In reality all of life is a sojourn. We don’t remain infants. We change. We don’t still live in the house we grew up in. I’ve moved 17 times in my 70 years. Life is a journey of changes. It’s a sojourn. We stop over here. We take this detour there. We stay temporarily a teenager, then a young adult, hopefully with seasoning along the way leading into elder care. We stay only a short time in each stage of life, preparing (or not) for what’s next.

How can we really prepare? I remind families often that the best thing they can do for their children is to plan their own funeral. Now THAT’S preparation. Then during the days of great loss, the children (who perhaps were NOT prepared) do not have the emotional drama of making those expensive decisions. That’s not morbid. It’s part of the sojourn. From dust we were created. To dust we will return. Agree?

It’s the in-between that’s the hard part. How in the world can I prepare for what I don’t know is coming? Well, for me personally, I trust Someone Who Knows the Future. He has written a book about me, and in that book are written ALL the days He has ordained for me (Psalm 139:16). So, when I’m surprised, shattered, despairing or realizing that this really isn’t permanent (that’s a hard pill to swallow…I really want things to stay the way they were!), I remind myself that He already has prepared for me, that He is totally trustworthy, that I can get over MYSELF, and once again trust Him for the journey…for the sojourn. This is temporary. This is a stop-over.

He’s Eternal…permanent. Trust Him. Word.

By Paula Lively. Paula is a Volunteer Chaplain at Broadmoor Medical Lodge in Rockwall. She is a VERY retired RN who loves serving the residents at Broadmoor. She and her husband, Fred, have lived in Rockwall for 15 years.

Our monthly print edition is delivered free to ~20,000 homes in Rockwall and Heath, TX.