Earlier in the spring of this year, two men died in the United States. Both men were famous, both were very sick before they died and both had what is commonly referred to as "the will to live."
Arthur Godfrey told a friend two months before he died, "I'm not going to die. I'm just not going to die." Well, quite obviously he knew that he would die some day in the future but, at the age of only 71, he just wasn't ready to call it quits. He wasn't ready to die yet.
Barney Clark, the first artificial heart recipient, was chosen because of his strong "will to live." And although his mechanical heart worked steadily for 112 days, his appointed time came and he died.
God tells us in His Word, "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." Heb. 9:27.
It is hard to imagine any person having better hospital care than Barney Clark had. Every life-support machine imaginable, everything that a doctor could possibly need to prolong a life, was there. But try as they might, it was all to no avail and he died of "multi-organ failure."
Maybe you are in a situation similar to these two men and feel that you still have plenty of time to prepare for eternity because you also have "the will to live."
Just as we read in Matt. 6:27, no man "by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature," so neither can you by taking thought add one hour to your life. "For what is your life? It is even a vapor, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away." James 4:14.
The Lord Jesus Christ laid down His life on the cross so that you can have eternal life. He has paid the penalty that you owed for your sins. Won't you simply put your trust in Him now? Then and only then can you welcome death, knowing that it will only bring you into eternal happiness.
"Oh, I pray you count the cost
Ere your Christless soul be lost—
Be in time!"