I talked with God about my cremation versus burial dilemma. He is my Loving Father, Who fortunately does not mind questions.
I know I can tell Him anything. He already knows, but He has always been a very patient listener. I often feel I am bringing Him a box of puzzle pieces. I had all the pieces already, but I did not know how to put them together.
I thought we would begin by talking about my obvious fears … fears of being burned alive or closed up in a concrete box forever.
Even though I kept saying I did not expect to still be attached to my body, I could not seem to think in any other way.
I have been in this body in some form as long as I can remember. “How can I be me if I am not in this body?” I asked Him.
He smiled. “I knew you before I gave you a body.”
Your eyes saw my unformed body!
Psalm 139:16
“You were so beautiful it was almost sad to cover you. But you needed a body suit to be able to live on earth. And what I gave you was a Designer Original. There is no one else exactly like you.”
“Remember how awed you were when you first started learning all about how the body works. No one could have come up with such a unique design but Me. Wouldn’t you agree?”
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well!
Psalm 139:14
“Yes,” I agreed. “Even with some physical challenges, this body had served me well for now almost three fourths of a century. So, that’s why I would like to keep it.”
He chuckled. “You already lost a lot of it.”
I did a quick inventory. It all seemed to be there.
“What did I lose?” I asked with some concern.
“Well, in the last minute, you have lost about 30,000 to 40,000 dead skin cells off the surface of your skin.”
“And in fact, even the organs inside your body have changed from when I first created you. Some cells in some of your organs are totally replaced in a matter of months. Still others remain much the same as they were on the day you were born.”
He had my attention.
“You keep some of what was yours from the beginning. But other things change so you can grow. And just as you discovered here on earth, when you grow, you get new clothes.”
Things were becoming a little clearer for me. But I wondered what all this had to do with cremation or burial. However, He was continuing to speak, so I listened.
He said, “Do you still have the hair you had when you were eight years old? How about your fingernails or toenails?”
I shook my head no.
“Were you upset when you lost them? Did you save them all?”
I answered, “Of course not. I didn’t need them any more and besides, I knew I was growing new hair and nails.”
He went on.
“Where are they? Did you burn them or bury them?”
God was always a great one for asking questions instead of just answering me straight out.
“Of course not. I didn’t need them any more, so I just let them go wherever. It really did not matter.”
He looked directly into my eyes. “So tell me again what is bothering you about losing what you are calling your body?”
Before I could answer, He brought out a tray of assorted food. There were nuts still in their shell, boiled eggs in their shells, raw peas and beans in their shells, corn still in the husks, bananas yet to be peeled and more.
He held up the banana and said, “If I peel this, which part would you call a banana?” He peeled it, held up the peel and said, “Is this the banana? Shall I eat it?”
I laughed at His silliness. “Of course not. You eat the fruit inside. That’s the real banana. The outside is just the covering.”
He smiled. “Exactly,” He said.
Your body came from the earth. And when you die, it will return to the earth. But your spirit came from God, and when you die, it will return to Him!
Ecclesiastes 12:7
Stay tuned for the rest of the conversation.😘
