You Go First

You Go First
 
“Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.” Hebrews 6.19, 20
 

Stepping into a new adventure always seems easier when there is someone leading the way.
 
I remember, as a child, hanging out with a couple of my pals – Frankie and Ronnie. They seemed to be made of stiffer – more daring stuff than I, and would attempt feats I thought only Superman would have attempted. Most of the feats were simple enough when someone else tried, but I was a bit more reticent. That may be why I made it through grade school with no broken bones. Frankie and Ronnie – not so fortunate.
 
One “dare” that brought chills to my soul was when I was in the seventh grade and concerned a large highway pipe that ran under the highway behind the baseball field at Carthage Elementary School. The pipe began in a wooded area just below the field and ran under the road dumping into a pool at the other end. It was large enough for us to stand upright in, but it zigged once and it zagged once so that, when in the middle section, there was complete darkness. Ronnie urged me on by having me watch him enter on one end and exit on the other. After following him through a couple of times, I realized there was little to fear and became confident when traversing the dark.
 
A few years ago, I had the second of two “widow-maker” heart attacks. My toes dipped themselves into the edge of eternity and I felt I was on shifting sand – slipping away from this world and into the next. The thought of dying doesn’t tickle my funny bone because there is a certain lack of being in control. (I’ve never enjoyed activities in which I gave control over to someone else.) For 112 days I gave my control over to the doctors and nurses of the Intensive Care unit; but, ultimately into the hands of the One who experienced death for all of us.
 
One of the great blessings the follower of Christ has is that he neither faces death alone nor does he face it first. We have a Savior who not only tasted death, but also returned to accompany us into the presence of our Father. Our Savior-God is the forerunner and surety of our salvation. He will certainly be with us through the valley of the shadow of death. (Psalm 23.4)
 
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.” Hebrews 2.9