Would YOU be asked to be on the Welcoming Committee?
This week’s column is profound, so hang with me and read it all the way through. “Gettin’ ready to Breathe” is a song by Wes Hampton about the hopes that believers have about what they’ll experience as they enter Heaven. It’s set up as a final conversation between a couple married for 52 years with the wife who’s about to pass on, comforting her husband while assuring him that they’ll be together again someday. She says to him “When I take my last breath here, I'll take my first one there. So don't cry for me, I'm gettin’ ready to breathe”
I’ve grown comfortable attending funerals, but I wasn’t always like that. I used to hate them. Growing up, the only funerals I attended were those of my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and Joe Stack. Joe was 2 years older than me and lived life from a wheelchair battling muscular dystrophy. Joe lived across the street and four houses down from us, and I used to spend a lot of time playing with Joe. I’m not sure if it was because I felt sorry for him or if it was because none of the other neighborhood kids showed much interest in playing with Joe. Maybe it was to prepare me for challenges I’d face later in life. All I knew at the time was that whenever I spent time with Joe, I felt good…no, better by the time I arrived home.
When I was 10, we moved 75 miles away and the only time over the next few years I saw Joe was around Christmas when my parents let me stop by and give Joe a Christmas present. While I missed the time I used to spend with Joe prior to moving, life didn’t provide any viable opportunities for us to get together. Joe lost his battle with muscular dystrophy when I was 14 and that remains in my mind the toughest funeral I’ve ever attended. I hadn’t embraced my faith yet and I couldn’t process death, so I cried…uncontrollably, and went through the motions feeling numb, without any understanding of what appeared to be the finality of death.
Now, if you just glanced back up at the title of this column and you’re wondering where I’m headed at this point, be patient and keep reading. The destination I’m leading you to is worth the journey. So why am I at a point in life where I’m willing to embrace every funeral experience? Well, every funeral provides an opportunity to comfort people that need comforting. Joe Stack taught me the value of being willing to step outside my comfort zone to help others. Through the years I’ve learned what not to say, what’s best to say, and to recognize the times when saying nothing…just being present…can be what comforts a person most. I’ve also developed a better understanding of the five stages of grief after a loss and can better assess where someone may be on their grief journey.
Goodness. All this talk about funerals. What’s my point? Well, I’ve been thinking about my own eventual death. While I’m not in any hurry, I’m excited about it whenever it actually does occur. Why? Just like Wes Hampton’s song says, as soon as I take my last breath here, I’ll take my first breath in Heaven. And when I do, after I say hi to all the family and friends (especially Joe Stack) that have ever been part of my life, I’ve decided I want to be on the Welcoming Committee. My forever dream job. The Welcoming Committee. No, I’m not a couple sandwiches short of a picnic. Stick with me here.
Think of the important role anyone on a welcoming committee plays. Might be welcoming students to a new school or university, welcoming someone to a new community, welcoming a new neighbor to the neighborhood, welcoming a new hire on their first day, welcoming a new member of a civic club, welcoming a new member to an athletic team, or welcoming someone to the hospital when they’re about to have surgery or a test performed. A welcomer is kind of like a professional hand-holder. They establish immediate belief in the person they’re welcoming (even if the person doesn’t believe in themselves). They provide comfort and assurance.
Take a moment and create an image in your mind of the perfect person to be a professional welcomer. What would they look like? What would their speech be like, meaning, what words would you imagine coming out of their mouth? How would they treat others? What would their social media posts look like? What would their presence look like in the community in which they live? What role would volunteering play in their life? Imagine what their peer group might look like? What brings them joy? What are their family dynamics? Ask yourself these questions and more until you have a defined image of what YOU believe a professional welcomer looks like.
Chances are you’ve created an image of a significantly happy and joyful person who’s consistently helping other people. Now, who do you currently know that comes closest to that image? Any chance it could be you? If not, any chance you’d be willing to pursue a path of improvement to become that person you created an image of? It’s a path I’m currently on and quite frankly, it’s working really well for me. It can work for YOU TOO! Since there isn’t any downside, why not at least try? That way we could both be on Heaven’s Welcoming Committee! Wouldn’t that be profound? Hey…I Believe In YOU! GiddyUp!