I spent a number of years studying NDE’s (near death experiences). One of my favorite moments comes towards the end of the experience, just before the soul chooses to return to the body. The soul comes before a proverbial stadium full of supporters applauding their efforts in growth and service. This is something seemingly only experienced on a few occasions, usually in place of the typical “life review“. I don’t know why these souls get the red carpet rolled out for them, nor (unfortunately) can I give you a link to the experiences themselves, as I read them almost a decade ago. However, the mental image of a stadium of supporters has stuck with me. I can only imagine the lift such an experience would give–knowing the full extent of those believing in and supporting you through the tough times.
Spiritual Cheerleading
The obvious interpretation of the stadium imagery is imagining the crowd of souls whom you have had a positive impact on in your life (children/students/co-workers) or who have had a vested interest in your spiritual journey (family, mentors, church and ministry leaders). When faced with a challenging stretch, sometimes it is comforting to imagine a stadium full of your soul’s biggest fans believing in you and encouraging you to fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
Unnamed Heroes
Yet this morning, as this image crossed my mind once more, I couldn’t help but think of the flip interpretation. What about the large numbers of souls to whom I owe gratitude?
Head Count
At the age of 40, there are:
-more than one hundred family members
-one hundred (impactful) classmates
-twenty or so kind-hearted and passionate teachers and professors
-seventy-five co-workers
-thirty close friends from various stages of life
-another hundred members of churches, small groups, and Bible studies
-at least a hundred of the thousand of students who have deeply impacted who I am
And those are just the people whom I can name quickly. It’s a heart-warming exercise to think of all the people who have “loved you into being” (thank you, Mr. Rogers, for that).
Speaking of Mr. Rogers, some of those who have impacted our souls (such as TV personalities) we may never have met, or have met (random run-ins at the DMV or the grocery store), but so briefly as to not even know their names.
Unsung Heroes
One of the unsung heroes in my life was a woman in line ahead of me at a grocery store checkout about ten years ago. I was a mother of two young boys: an almost four year old and a newborn. She was speaking of her own grown sons and how close she was to them. At that point in my life, one of my greatest fears was that my boys would grow up and be emotionally distant from our family. She looked at me kindly and told me that based on the close, open, compassionate relationship it was apparent I was nurturing with my young boys, that I would have nothing to worry about. Not only did this quash my fears, but it was also a message I carried to other young mothers with similar worries. As I write this, my then four year old is now fourteen and is one of my closest friends. I have seen the truth in her words play out. I don’t remember her face or know her name, but her legacy is long in my life.
The Christ Within–The True Legacy
As Christians, we hope to be remembered not so much for the good that we do but for the love that we show–the Christ light shining within us. The Christ light shone strong in this woman, it shone beyond me to those I shared her message with. Which leads me back to the first, most obvious, interpretation of the stadium–who knows how many people’s lives are touched by Christ’s love within us?
Interconnected
Perhaps both of these presentations of the cloud of supporters can be true simultaneously.
Close your eyes and imagine yourself standing in the center of a football stadium, in the halftime show of your life.
On your left are all those who have loved you into being.
On your right, all those whom you have loved into being, whether known or unknown,
And lining the end zones, those with whom you walk the path of mutual growth together.
We do not walk this path of life alone. No action we take is completely of us. For what remains after we pass from this life is the love that we show (1 Corinthians 13:13). And the love that we give is not of us, but is a gift from those who encouraged us and showed us the way. That love we pass on, and it becomes the guiding light to others.
Really, it’s about getting out of the way, and letting the Christ within take centerstage. In Christ, we are all simultaneously–we are the cheerleaders, the givers, the receivers, and the witnesses. We are all one in Christ. And maybe that answers my initial question about why some souls get to experience that stadium experience and others don’t. Maybe they are the ones who get it–who know it isn’t about them. That there is no cheerleader, supporter, one being supported or cheered–we are all one. We are all Christ.