🕊 A Spiritual Obituary — and a Second Chance
🕊 A Spiritual Obituary — and a Second Chance
There are moments in life when you look eternity straight in the eyes.
Before my recent back surgery, I didn’t know if I was going to make it through. Six months to a year of recovery loomed ahead. It felt like walking into a fiery trial. 🔥
So I did something unusual.
I wrote my own obituary — not about death, but about testimony. I wanted my family and friends to know the story that mattered most… while I was still alive to tell it.
And now, by the mercy of God, I’m still here. 🙏
📜 Before the Operation: My Spiritual Obituary
“I was only perfect when I walked with Christ.”
That was my story: stumbling, repenting, listening, rising again, and learning that the Savior really does walk beside His disciples.
🔥 The Witness That Changed My Life
As a young missionary, I prayed—and heaven answered.
A fire lit up every fiber of my body. The Spirit testified beyond doubt that the Book of Mormon was true.
That moment became my measuring stick for truth. From that day forward, I knew:
👉 If the Spirit could speak once with such clarity, it could speak again.
That fire guided my entire life. It told me to trust the scriptures.
It told me to listen for the Savior’s voice.
It told me to lay down the traditions of men and walk in the way Christ Himself outlined.
👨👩👧👦 Family and the Walk of Life
I was a husband who cherished his wife—bound to her by covenant and vision.
I once saw us both standing with the Savior, sealed forever. That vision became my anchor.
I was a father and grandfather who loved telling stories:
⚾ Little League victories.
🏌️ Golf rounds where I got more than my share of lucky bounces — “Bob Bounces,” they called them.
I laughed easily and teased often. But under it all, I wanted my children and grandchildren to inherit the same flame that burned in me: the testimony of Jesus Christ.
When the call came to lay down golf—the game I loved—I heard it. And I obeyed.
I traded clubs for words, fairways for pages, scorecards for scripture studies.
Out of that sacrifice was born my blog, my Book of Remembrance, my testimony to the world.
That was my offering. ✍️
📖 A Student of Scripture
I scoured the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Nemenhah Records.
I found in them a united message:
“Repent, come unto Christ, and do not trust in the arm of flesh.”
I found chiasmus and patterns—signs that these books carried the fingerprints of God.
I loved to remind others:
👉 “Don’t follow the robe—follow the Voice.”
Just as Lehi saw in his dream, robes and titles can lead astray.
Only the living Voice of Christ is safe.
🧭 End-Time Servants
I believe the prophecies of the last days. But I’ve never seen the “end-time servant” as just one man.
I see the Lord raising up many humble servants—ordinary men and women inspired to point others to Christ, prepare the way, and help awaken the remnant.
I’ve simply tried to do my little part. Years ago, the Spirit impressed me to write. 🕊
So I began keeping a spiritual journal—recording the things the Lord was teaching me. Over time, I brought those notes together with the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith’s original teachings, and other sacred records (without the LDS twists added after Brigham).
Out of that prayerful gathering came these blogs and posts—an offering from my heart. ✍️
Every post has been my way of saying to my brothers and sisters:
“Come to Christ. Hear His voice. Don’t be deceived by appearances.”
I don’t claim any title or mantle—just a desire to follow the Spirit’s prompting and add my voice to the many who are pointing back to the true Shepherd. 🐑
🌿 The Doctrine of Christ (2 Nephi 31–32)
If one scripture burned deepest in me, it was the Doctrine of Christ:
✨ Faith
✨ Repentance
✨ Baptism by water
✨ Baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost
Here’s the key:
Once you receive that baptism of fire, Christ Himself promises to come.
Nephi records it:
“Then shall ye receive Him.”
Not in some distant day, not only after death, but here, in mortality. The Lord will walk with you. He will speak to you. He will show you the way.
This isn’t what’s taught in Sunday School. But I knew it was true — because I’d tasted it.
The Savior had come to me, and I wanted the world to know:
👉 Don’t settle for less than the living Christ.
🗣 Final Testimony
If I could stand here today (and by His grace, I still can), this is what I’d say:
“Jesus Christ lives. He is the Son of God, the Savior of the world.
He speaks. He walks with us. Hear Him. Follow Him. Walk with Him.
My life was imperfect, but He made it whole.
Zion will not be built with stone, but with love and consecrated hearts.
Do not trust in titles or robes or the arm of flesh.
Trust in the Voice that calls your name.
That is the way. That is the truth. That is the life.” ✨
⛰ Through the Valley
The surgery went well, but the road back has been long and rough.
Recovery is no small thing. Pain has been real. There have been moments where faith had to burn hotter than fear.
But through it all, I’ve felt deep gratitude.
Gratitude for my family.
Gratitude for the extra time God has given me.
And gratitude that I got to see my own legacy before the end.
Writing this obituary wasn’t morbid — it was clarifying.
It was like holding up a mirror and asking, “What story does my life tell when all the noise fades?”
📝 Looking Ahead
I don’t know exactly what the next year holds. But I know this: I intend to finish this race with faith.
If I have more words to write, more blogs to post, more love to give — then by heaven, I’m going to do it.
Thank you for your prayers. 🙏
Thank you for walking this journey with me.
And most of all, thank you for listening to the Voice that matters most.
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