LESSONS
IN A HOSPITAL BED

Topics: Achievement; Death; Materialism; Meaning; Riches

References: Job 27:16–17; Psalm 39:6; Ecclesiastes 2:26; Matthew 6:19–21; James 5:3

Sudden loss often simplifies life. For example, a man who found himself in a hospital bed wrote:

I came to realize I no longer really cared for what the world chases after, such as how much money you have in the bank and how many cars are parked in the garage. As it says in Ecclesiastes, chasing after these things is like chasing the wind, anyway. Suddenly, the rat race became vanity to me, utter vanity. I felt naked before God.

If I died, I would take none of the stuff with me. All that really mattered ultimately was my relationship with the Lord, my relationship with family and friends. If it weren’t for the loss of my health, I could have wasted the rest of my life chasing achievements and acquiring more transitory things.

I’d say his loss served him well, wouldn’t you?

—Bill Hybels, “The Often-Overlooked Benefits of Losing,” Preaching Today Audio, no. 80