You probably know the story of Corrie Ten Boom and her family in the concentration camps in WWII. They weren’t Jews but hid some Jews in their house (The Hiding Place book and movie). She lost all her family in the camps. Her sister had great faith but feared death and Corrie comforted her by remembering what their father had once told her. “Father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. “Corrie,” he began gently, “when you and I go to Amsterdam-when do I give you your ticket?” “When Corrie worries about the future, her father asks her when she is given the ticket to get on a train. I sniffed a few times, considering this. “Why, just before we get on the train.” “Exactly. And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need-just in time.“

I know Christians should not fear death. Martyrs like Polycarp were not afraid of death. “Polycarp’s steadfastness is highlighted in his refusal to deny Christ, even when threatened with death by burning and mauling by beasts. He viewed martyrdom not as something to be feared, but as an honor and a way to emulate Christ. He believed that true martyrs represented Christ in their actions surrounding death.” (AI) But I have to be honest. I do fear death. I blame my mom for all my fears! She was always trying to protect me from bad things that might happen. Don’t climb up high, you might fall. So I have acrophobia! Watch out for snakes, so I am afraid of snakes. My grandsons pick up non-poisonous snakes and handle them. My mom always knew of someone who had died from a minor injury or infection, like an infected toe. So even a little infection worries me. She was always cautious about checking the details of everything, so I am OCD. I do have faith that I will live eternally and never die (spiritually) just as Jesus promised, but I still have that fear of death and what it will be like to breathe your last breath and lose life in this body.  

That is why the story of Corrie and her sister Betsy is comforting to me. When it comes time to die, I hope that God will give me the comfort and strength that I need to face death courageously. I believe that he will.

I have a prayer that I make every day asking God to remove fear, doubt, worry, and stress from my mind, to help me to “cast all my anxiety on Him”. I admit that I am a worrier. Here’s what Corrie said about worry. ““Worrying is carrying tomorrow’s load with today’s strength-carrying two days at once. It is moving into tomorrow ahead of time. Worrying doesn’t empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength. Trying to do the Lord’s work in your own strength is the most confusing, exhausting, and tedious of all work. But when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, then the ministry of Jesus just flows out of you.”

Here is the article some of these quotes from Corrie were taken from. https://emilybrookswriter.com/2022/07/24/waiting-for-your-ticket-the-courage-of-corrie-ten-boom/?scrlybrkr=f2f8117f