Is Life Worth Living

I had a little tiff with my husband tonight...at a football game.  I ended up leaving at half time and walked home.  I needed to get some things at the store so I got into my car and headed toward Wegmans.  While shopping, I came across the magazine racks as you go to the checkout counters and spied a copy of TIME.  On the cover was a picture of Robin Williams.  I picked it up and the entire issue was about him.  I bought it.

I've been a fan of Robin Williams for many years but never really knew anything about him.  I don't normally delve into celebrities' lives unless there's a particular reason.  For the most part, I find when I do explore their lives, I get disappointed when I realize they're not who they appear to be.  Are any of us?  No.  But for some reason I expect more out of  celebrities, the pastor of my church, and certain leaders in our society.  When I don't see that and find out they're just like anyone else....they have their dark sides.....they aren't what I expected.....I get disillusioned and my attitudes, reactions and desires for future involvement change.  So, I tend not to delve.

But Robin's death, especially because it was a suicide, really hit me.  It's odd that comedians sometimes are the ones with the worse depression and in his case, it was true.  I can't say that I look down on him now, I don't.  I just wish I had known so I could have prayed for him.  He needed God.  But I know God had others trying to find him and draw him to our Savior; I have no doubt.  God is faithful.  He gave the Holy Spirit to "convict the world of sin"....John 16:8, and He uses us to do that sometimes in other's lives.  

Robin Williams dealt with addictions and that led to depression.  The enemy gets in all sorts of ways.  I've dealt with depression already and I can honestly say that when you are depressed, nothing else matters but getting away from it.  You don't care how.  I can understand why he did what he did in the end, but it's such a sad ending and way to go.  The only thing that kept me from doing the same thing was fear.  I'm a wuss.  I hate pain.  I couldn't handle doing anything that may have physically hurt me.  The night I tried to commit suicide, I got as drunk as I could get.  Normally when I got drunk I wouldn't remember anything the next day, but, not this night.  Not only did I remember, but I saw myself doing everything and couldn't stop myself from doing it.  It was like I was right beside myself, but couldn't reach out and stop me.  But, I remembered everything.  I couldn't say the next day...."oh, it's not my fault; I don't remember what happened.  The devil made me do it."  Not this time.  

That was the night I fell before the TV set and prayed a prayer with Jim Baker of the PTL club and got saved for real.  I went to bed knowing that I had alienated everyone in my life at that point, but I knew that God loved me and saved me.  My life changed from night to day all in one evening.  I wish Robin Williams could have experienced that.

As I read his story, I prayed for his family and friends.  He seemed to have helped a lot of people.  He loved doing for others and was involved in many charitable programs.  He gave of himself.  I cry for him and laugh because of him.  I'll watch his movies over and over and enjoy them, but it will now carry the memory of his own sadness.  But that's part of life. 

Christopher Reeves, a good friend of Robin Williams and a person who was a classmate of his in Julliard, said after a visit from Robin, "anyone who says life is not worth living is totally wrong, totally wrong".  This is coming from a man paralyzed for the rest of his life from an accidental fall from a horse.  I stopped when I read that.  I thought, 'WHAT'!  Then I realized, coming from him, that was an incredibly profound statement....and true.  Life is an adventure and for the most part, it's what you make it.   Life isn't always 'sunshine and lollipops' as the song says, sometimes hard things enter into it, throwing us all for a loop but.....

That's life!  It's an opportunity to be here, in the flesh, experiencing good and bad things, but being able to choose where you want to spend eternity before you leave!  Then, and only then, are you where God truly intended all of us to be in the first place.  But it's YOUR choice!

Is life worth living for you?  Can you say that, or is there something that keeps you from saying it?  There's a better way....Jesus.  He's not just religion.  He's not just a boring holy subject.  He's peace, love, tenderness, acceptance, forgiveness, a new start, an exciting guide on a new journey and the only one who can take you and protect you from an enemy that's out to destroy you.  Don't let that happen.....there's a better way.  It's yours for the asking (and believing).