“So teach us to number our days, that we gain a heart of wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12 NKJV
“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” – Hebrews 9:27 NKJV
“For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” – James 4:14b NKJV
My oldest cousin recently died. His dad was my mom’s older brother. He was the first grandkid on my mom’s side of our family. In fact, he was so cute as a baby that my grandma’s nickname for him was “Peanut”, and it stuck, so far as she was concerned. It turns out that he was the third “Marshall”, with more to come, in the Williams family. We grew up in the same neighborhood and in the same generation and in the same extended family filled with all kinds of personalities, kinship, and common bonds for good and for bad.
Marshall and I were both from the wrong side of the wrong town where the local biker bar was called “Marshall’s Place.” Named after our grandfather who was a tough as nails WWII veteran, this joint was the hang out of choice for “The Invaders.” Rough men whose monikers were the likes of “Puke”, “Doughboy”, and “Baron” would frequent this establishment whose proprietor was simply known as “Ma Williams.” This is perhaps due to the fact that it was not uncommon for one our grandmother’s seven kids to be hanging around the tavern and they would, of course, call the bartender “Mom.” Back in those days, our grandmother would also illegally sell beer out of her home on Sundays because liquor stores were closed, at that time, on Sundays in northwest Indiana. Since my home was right across the street, I would gladly help out Grandma reload her stock whenever customers had cleaned out her refrigerator. All that being said, Marshall and I grew up in a tight-knit family where there was also, unfortunately, a whole lot of hard living.
By the time that I graduated high school in 1999, Grandma Williams had passed from this life into eternity and Marshall was living in her home with his wife and growing brood of kids. In fact, one of my earliest memories as a child growing up in the 1980s is of Marshall and Donna’s wedding at the United Methodist Church in Cedar Lake across the street from the Summerfest grounds. The summer of ’99 was quite memorable because Marshall gave me my first official job earning a real paycheck as we worked together for Scientific Window Company based out of the downtown Chicago area. Those early morning commutes into the city weren’t too brutal since he was right across the street and I could literally lay my head down on my pillow and get some more sleep while he drove the truck battling all that rush hour traffic. Good times.
Working with Marshall that summer was filled with so many blessings, and it seemed like he really enjoyed our time together. One of the larger jobs was replacing the windows in the Wacker Hotel off of Dearborn Drive right smack dab in the heart of downtown Chicago. Being in such close proximity to so much good food, Marshall couldn’t resist taking me out to so many of the local restaurants during lunchtime. I distinctly remember the porkchop sandwich slathered with mustard at the Maxwell Street Depot, delicious Italian food at Riccobene’s, and an old-fashioned McDonald’s right nearby. Good stuff.
Marshall was also generous in a mischievous kind of way at giving me a hard time as I was certainly not as worldly wise as he was. This kind of ribbing can be expected when working with a group of men who knew plenty of what the world has to offer. These guys loved to lay it on me pretty thick as Timmy was the “good Christian kid.” Their language was always colorful, their humor was uncouth, and their overall mannerisms rather crude. Despite being quite the motley crew, they were tough, masculine, and knew how to work hard.
Being just 18 years old and all “jacked” in some kind of shape; they made sure to have me as the gopher boy earn my keep on that job at the Wacker Hotel. Viewing it as yet another workout, I thoroughly enjoyed heaving those large windows off the truck, into the building, and up the elevator to whatever floor Marshall’s crew was removing the old windows from the extended stay hotel rooms. This also means that I was tasked with hauling all the junk out of the building and loading everything onto the trucks. Yes, it was indeed a dirty job where a guy got hot and sweaty and worked up quite the appetite. On one occasion, I remember losing track of where everyone was near the middle point of the workday. Sure enough, these hard-working men were enjoying their lunch out on one of the fire escapes in the alleyway while puffing away on marijuana joints. Sad but true.
Despite Marshall, and all the rest, not exactly giving much of a care about their bodies being healthy, besides what is illegal in a court of law, I still tried to encourage them in the right thing even if it was by merely not involving myself in their poor choices. Whereas I myself was not exactly the greatest paragon of virtue as a buffed out 18-year-old with a titanic load of testosterone surging through my system, I was decently aware of standards of biblical morality in relation to such vices as booze and drugs and snuff (chewing tobacco) that ought to govern the life of a Christian. Just as the Scriptures explain:
“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NKJV
Riding in Marshall’s truck on the way home was also filled with memorable sights and sounds (and smells courtesy of Mary Jane). Whenever the radio station, whether “Rock” 103.5 or 97.9 “The Loop”, would play a song that Marshall really liked, he would say “Good jam!” and turn up the volume. To this day, there are certain songs that will always remind me of him and those days of riding back home to Cedar Lake with the truck windows open and the radio blaring.
After working with Marshall that summer, I left for college on Chicago’s southwest side where I met my wife, Lori. Marshall and I would seldom see each other again except for perhaps on Christmas Eve and maybe a graduation party. The far more sobering reality is that we did indeed see each other at three funerals on that side of our family: Aunt Bonnie, Uncle Kevin, and Aunt Sue (my mom).
Looking back, I can be reasonably confident that Marshall and I talked about the Lord Jesus Christ, while riding in his truck, and how God Himself came here to die for our sins and how everyone needs to be saved from hell by the grace of God through faith in Christ. Even though I do not recall any specific details of our conversations, I am grateful that he certainly heard the gospel at those three funerals and especially Mom’s where he also served alongside my brothers and I as one of her pallbearers. Precious memories.
Now that Marshall himself has passed from this life into eternity, I’ve heard that his heart was supposedly right with the Lord. If this is indeed so, thanks be to God! Nevertheless, for the rest of his family, friends, and loved ones who are now left behind, I can only pray that his untimely death is cause for them to take stock of their lives and prayerfully consider what will happen to them whenever they walk through the valley of the shadow of death and pass on themselves. Life and death – time and eternity. These are ultimate issues that demand our attention before it’s forever too late.
Consider this: Almighty God Himself became a Man and bore the undiluted wrath that rebel sinners, like you and I, guilty of treason and sedition deserved. Christ asked God the Father, “if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matt.26:39 NKJV). It was at the cross that the Father’s fury exploded upon the Son and He drank that cup to the dregs crying out amidst unfathomable darkness, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt.27:45-46 NKJV). Whereas King David testified that, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of the death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me” (Ps.23:4 NKJV), Christ was unable to do so Himself because He walked that valley alone being forsaken by the Father when He “died for our sins” at Calvary (1 Cor.15:3 NKJV). Three days later, He rose again, is alive forevermore, and in Him the people of God have Living Hope for time and eternity! Hallelujah, what a Savior!
May that also be your prayer of gratitude from the depths of your heart and soul on this day. Where one’s heart is in relation to the Lord Jesus Christ really does make all the difference in the world. Life and death – time and eternity. Perhaps I’ll see Marshall again one day whenever I pass on myself and we’ll surely enjoy better times than ever because of Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. Thanks be to God!
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.” – Acts 16:31 NKJV
“Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” – 2 Corinthians 6:2b NKJV
“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 15:57 NKJV
