Chasing Butterflies in Fields of Gold

There are a lot of things in life that I think we all think about, but we don't talk about a lot. Stuff that our culture says that maybe we have to accept, or ignore, and should not be spoken about, especially in public. And usually, these are about things that are pretty controversial, like prejudice, like homosexuality, like politics, and our own faith in Christ. Tonight I want to talk with you guys about another one of the subjects I bet we all think about at least once a week. Tonight I want to talk about death.

This has not been my favorite week to prepare a message. It's been an emotional roller-coaster for a lot of us...Lauren Olson leaving us last week, and the passing of Ashleigh Whitty, Kyle's older sister. But the weird thing is that God uses these sad circumstances to bring us closer to each other, and to Him. And, the even weirder part is that I was preparing a message on death before I even knew that Ashleigh was in the hospital.

After Ashleigh passed away last Friday night, I thought, you know, maybe I shouldn't do a message on death. It might be too soon. It might be too sensitive. The wounds may be too raw. But then I thought, if I don't do the message on death, I would be a bigger hypocrite than I already know I am. Because I have said to you guys many times that God isn't interested in coming into our lives only when it's convenient for us to invite Him in. He's not interested coming into our lives only when it’s comfortable for us. He's not interested into coming into our lives only for things we need for Him. No. God wants all of us... all the time. And God wants to wrap us in his arms more than ever when things in our lives get tough. And He wraps his arms around us even tighter when lives around us are taken.

While it’s weird to talk about death, I’m not all that uncomfortable with it. We see death all around us all the time. The internet, the news, popular TV shows, music videos, and popular music are all drunk with images or stories of death. So much so that a lot of times we see death around us so matter of factly that we become so saturated with it that we become insensitive to it. Someone died in a car accident on Route 44 last night? There are car accidents on that road every night. Somebody was killed in a drug deal gone bad in downtown Taunton last weekend. Oh well, it was probably bound to happen, and maybe they deserved it. Ashleigh Whitty died last Friday night at 8pm while we were all singing and worshiping God. Oh well, I didn't know her, so what's the big deal?

Well, it is a big deal. Not because of same unnamed driver who dies in a car accident, not because of some drug dealer we didn't know. And not because the older sister of Kyle Whitty is no longer here with us. It's a big deal for us as Christians because it shows, again, that we worship a big God, a God that loves us, a God who often does things in his infinite nature that our finite minds cannot begin to understand, a God that has arms so big and mighty that He can wrap all of us in them when someone we know has died.

Even if I, or Derek, or Pastor John, or any of the youth leaders had all the answers about life and death, there would be nothing as soothing as having that person who had died be back alive. Until we’re in the presence of God Himself, many of us in here, we’re going to be left with more questions that we have answers for. But I am confident of one answer. Although I did not know Ashleigh much more than to say hello and goodbye to at Wal-Mart, I know this much- she loved Jesus. And this much I also know- Jesus loved and loves her now. So much, that there can be no doubt that Jesus took her home, allowed her to rise out of that wheelchair, and my guess is that right now she is running like the wind, chasing butterflies in fields of gold, and Jesus is cheering her on...run Ashleigh, run.

I really believe that there are some things that you and I can learn together tonight...I’ve already learned a lot this week in thinking about it and praying about it and searching the scriptures.

The Bible says a lot about death. During the week I must have gone through hundreds of verses that I pulled out of the Bible that have to do with death and dying. As I read every single one of these and thought about how I use just one of these in speaking tonight to all of you guys...people I care about and who I love and I want to live their life to the fullest. There are some things that I really believe that you and I can learn about life and love and the future.

Psalm 89:48 says, “No one can live forever; all will die. No one can escape the power of the grave.”

Everyone is going to die. Death is 100%. It hits everyone. I heard a story about a preacher who was trying to tell people about the difference between heaven and hell and he said, “How many of you want to go to heaven? Raise your hand.” All of the people raised their hand except a little boy in the front row. He wasn’t raising his hand. The preacher thought that’s kind of weird. He asked again. “How many of you want to go to heaven? Raise your hand.” Again, everybody raised their hand except the little boy. This confused the preacher. So the preacher stops his message and says to the little boy, “You don’t want to go to heaven when you die?” The kid goes, “Oh! When I die! I thought you were trying to get a bunch of us to volunteer to go right now!”

We love living and we fear dying. But the truth is no one can escape the power of the grave.

Ecclesiastes 7:4 “A wise person thinks about death, but a fool thinks only about having a good time.”

If I was to ask you, one on one, just you and me, “Do you want to be wise or do you want to be a fool?” Chances are you would say if you’re outside the company of your friends you would say, “I want to be wise.” The Bible says if you want to be wise then think about death. If you want to be a fool pretend it doesn’t exist. Just go looking for the next party.

But I believe you got out of bed today and came here tonight and not to a party or the mall or a movie because you want to be wise, you want to be different. So let’s be wise. Let’s take a look at some things we might be able to do as we think about death and what it can teach us about love, life and the future.

1. Recognize the UNCERTAINTY of life

None of us in here is guaranteed tomorrow. Isn’t that kind of a weird thought, that nobody in here is guaranteed that they will be alive tomorrow? I bet if you asked some of your teachers in school who have been teaching for a long time that there were students who were sitting at their desks on Friday afternoon, and then were missing on Monday morning because they had died. Maybe killed by a drunk driver or something like that. You don’t think about that at times but life is uncertain. You’re not guaranteed tomorrow. As a matter of fact, you’re not guaranteed – nor am I guaranteed – the rest of tonight.

The Bible pictures life’s uncertainty. James 4 says, “You do not know what will happen tomorrow! Your life is like a mist. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away.”

The interesting thing about being a teenager today just like it was for me is that for most of you, you might say, “I’ve got so much life left to live.” You never really think about death. You think death happens to old people. Death is just something that happens to other people, out there somewhere.


But then I think of that high school football player that died a few weeks ago. There he is, playing football, probably one of the passions of his life…he is healthy, running, and then, BOOM. Life is cut short. Friends, hear me on this - life is uncertain. There are NO guarantees. You want to be wise. You need to think about death- not dwell on it and let it consume your life- but think about it as a reality check for all us.

In John 14:2, Jesus says it so simply and completely-

“In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”

But I love the next verse-

“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”

Folks, I believe every word in the Bible. Every story. Every conflict. Every tragedy. Every battle. Every loss. And because of that, I believe that Jesus prepared a room for Ashleigh. A room with no wheelchair. A room with no special medicine or medical equipment to keep her going or living what we so arrogantly think is a “normal life.” And I believe that Jesus prepared a room for Ashleigh, where when she looked at the ceiling, the saw butterflies in a golden field.

Some of you may have been at CCC’s regular worship last Sunday where Pastor John said that one of the most incredible things anyone has ever said to him was when Kyle Whitty, less than 48 hours after losing his older sister, said to Pastor John, “I know that Ashleigh is running to Jesus.” Wow. But my pray is this- that she caught Jesus, they embraced, and Ashleigh is now one of his angels, chasing butterflies in a field of gold.

Friends, I’m not telling this to you to depress you. But most of us in here are a little freaked out and afraid to talk about death. The average life span of an American is about 75 years. So for most of us we think we’ve got at least that long to go. But the truth is nobody’s promised tomorrow. Life is uncertain.

It’s not just out there on the Internet where we hear about people dying. It’s in our neighborhoods. It’s in our schools. It’s on our block. For some it’s in our home. Life is uncertain. You want to be wise, you want to be aware of death and understand death. The church is in a series called “Got Life?” We should also add, “Death happens.”


I haven't been to many funerals in my life, but the one thing I hear at every one of them is people saying this - If only I had known. If only I had known that my mom or dad wouldn't be coming home from work that night. If I only had known that my boyfriend was going to be drinking and driving with his friends. If only I had known that Jim Whittemore wouldn’t be coming back from that road-side job. If only I had known that Ashleigh wouldn't be coming home from the hospital last Friday.

They live with deep regret. If only I had known he was going to die I would have said this. I would have done this. If only I we had known she was going to die I would have been a better friend. I wouldn't have gossiped about them. I wouldn't have let them down. I wouldn't have been such a jerk to them at school, or here at RISE708. I would have said this. I would have done that. Take note. Life is uncertain.

The Bible says in Psalm 39:

“My life is no longer than my hand! My whole lifetime is but a moment to You oh God...And so, Lord, my only hope is in You.”

Because of that I say to you. Enjoy times with your family. Enjoy Friday nights at RISE708 with Derek, and the leaders, and every student that has the guts to walk through those front doors at 7pm. Don’t go to bed all ticked off. Reconcile with your friends and the people you’re around. Life is too short not to live life to its fullest.

I love Psalm 146, and I would bet the house that Ashleigh was thinking something like this last Friday night at the same moment Tim began to sing:

“I will praise the LORD as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God even with my dying breath.”

The second thing we should do is this -

2. Don’t RUN from death

Death is weird. It’s strange. It’s difficult for everybody. It doesn’t make you feel comfortable. I’ve been to enough funerals that I realize that some people after the funeral will spend more time talking about how good the cheese dip was at the party after the funeral rather than talking about their feelings or their thoughts or what they felt about the person or what was said or what they experienced. Don’t run from death.

Some of your friends when they come back to school after a death experience with family or relatives or somebody like that they need to be around you. They need to talk to you, they need your support.
But our first reaction is to run. We want to say, “They don’t need to be bothered now. Don’t worry about them. I’m just going to give them some time to be by themselves.”
I used to think that way as well. Until last Sunday. When I saw the courage of Kyle Whitty to come to church, just like any other Sunday. But this time Kyle KNEW he would facing his friends who would all want to know the same thing- how you doing, man? And when I saw him last Sunday, I changed my thinking on giving others “space”.

When people lose someone they love, they need to be around you. They need to share stories about the friend and the family member that they lost. They need to process their pain. They need a shoulder to cry on. You don’t have to worry about what you have to say. They don’t want your little mini lectures on theology. They don’t need the diverse opinions about life and death. They need silence. They need tears. They need love. They need your presence.

How many people in here went to Ashleigh’s wake earlier this week. I was talking to Derek about the sheer size of the crowd that waited in line for hours just to say goodbye. Derek tells me that about 2000 people went to that wake, and it didn’t end until after 11pm. Wow. But it was crushing for me to finally make it into the funeral home hallway, and get my first glimpse of Ashleigh’s Mom and Dad and Kyle, all standing through shell-shocked and shaking hands and hugging person after person. And as I saw this I prayed, “Oh God, give me something beautiful to say, something that will make things all better.” Wow. How arrogant of me. And when my turn finally came, I hugged Ashleigh’s Mom, and said nothing. And I shook hands and higged Ashleigh’s Dad. And said nothing. And I hugged Kyle. And said nothing.

How many people in here have had to put down a pet? I have. Twice. I love big dogs, and that’s why I always tell Derek that I am the big dog. But seriously, since we love big dogs, we also know that their life span is much shorter than those of a small dog. That’s just the way God created them. But the first time I had to make that painful decision that it was time, I wasn’t a Christian. But I sought out the advise of a friend who would eventually help lead me to Christ. His simple answer was this…you will know. And both times, I did know. And, at least in my life, there is nothing worse than that drive to the vet’s office with your long-time pal in the back seat, hurting, looking at you through the rear-view mirror with those big brown eyes saying, Bob, why are you home from work today. Why am I getting a ride in the car with you and Margie. That never happens. What’s up?

You know what’s an even longer, lonlier ride? The ride on the train to work after you have left the vet’s office with your pal. And by the time you get the train, rush hour is pretty much over and you are like the only person on the train. Lonely. In grief. With no one to listen to you grieving. No shoulder to cry on.

So here’s what I tell people when they say, I don’t know what to do. Here’s my advice – be there. Just be there. For Kyle, I knew Cam Bartlett would just be…Cam Bartlett. I knew that Brad would just be…Brad. I knew Jake Zakarian would just be…Jake Zakarian. No more. No less.

For those of you who have been around death before and you have grieved the death of somebody you love, you are even much more important to be there because you know how to comfort. You know what you needed.


2 Corinthians 1 says:

“God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. He comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us.”

Please guys, don’t run from death. I realize it sounds weird. Everybody thinks it’s weird not to run from death. But don’t run from it. We’re not running from it here at RISE708. That’s why we’re talking about it. That’s why we’re teaching on it. As a matter of fact, we’re not running from it and I would like to share a story about two teenagers- brothers and sisters, who go to a youth group just like ours in California:

There names are Casey and Lindsey- Casey was a freshman at the local high school and Lindsey was his older sister who was a junior that year. Their mother was diagnosed with lung cancer 1997. Fortunately, the doctor caught it in an early stage and their Mother immediately went into surgery. They were able to take out all of the cancer along with one third of her lung. For two years her health was good. She didn’t have to go through radiation, chemo or any other treatments. But then in 1999 the doctors found that she had cancer in her hipbone. This time they couldn’t do surgery to get it out. She had to start going through radiation and then through chemo. Her health started getting worse. She had to go from using a cane to a walker and finally a wheelchair. Of course Casey and Lindsey were freaked out that their mom had cancer and during this time their faith in God was really tested. In fact, Casey knew that God would heal her and never thought that God would disappoint him.

The news of their mother’s bone cancer was obviously a disappointment to Lindsey and Casey. But instead of getting depressed about it, both Casey & Lindsey had an extremely positive outlook on the situation and used this time to grow in their faith and develop a closer relationship with God. Though their mother’s health had gotten worse, none of it hindered their faith that she would be healed. Their family was constantly surrounded by people who lifted them up and who were constantly praying for healing.

Like Casey, Lindsey absolutely believed that God would heal their mother there was no reason to believe that anything bad would happen. And slowly but surely their mother’s health started to get better. And every day is was a day closer to her remission.

However in September of 2001, their mother started to constantly get headaches. Soon after this their parents called Lindsey and Casey into their room where they revealed to them that the doctors found that their mom had a brain tumor. Lindsey said that although she was obviously disheartened, all she could remember thinking was, She’ll only have a better testimony to share when God heals her.

During this time, Casey still looked at the bright side. He told his mother that whatever happened it’d be ok. If she died she’d be in heaven with her own mom and if she didn’t die then she’d stay here with us. Through the next several weeks after discovering the brain tumor, their mom had to go through intense radiation and chemotherapy. She soon had hospice care, which is where a hospital bed was placed in her room along with some of the necessary equipment. And nurses came into their house to take care of her. But is was to no avail. Their mom’s health dropped at an incredible rate.

But even as Casey & Lindsey watched their loving, energetic mom lie there helpless, bedridden in an almost comatose state, their family’s faith endured.

The next month, in October 2001, their mom had to be admitted into the hospital for what they thought was a slight case of pneumonia which is a huge threat when someone is in the state their mother was in.

The next day Lindsey was sitting in class when the teacher told her to grab her things and go to the office. Lindsey immediately knew what had happened. But she also knew something else as she made that long walk through the quite halls of her high school, past all those lockers, all those closed classroom doors with students behind them that weren’t going through what she was going through. Lindsey knew she couldn’t suddenly abandon her faith in her mother’s healing. In fact, Lindsey made herself believe that she had gotten an early dismissal because the day had come when the doctors finally announced her mom’s complete recovery from cancer.

Lindsey finally made her way to the school office. And when she got up to the office she saw her Dad there waiting for her, sitting on a bench outside the office, his head buried in his hands. And her mom wasn’t there alongside him, perfectly healthy, back to her normal happy state with her hair grown back and all the signs of cancer gone. Instead my dad looked up to me, his eyes swollen from tears, and he gently broke the news to Lindsey- “Your mom finally went home to heaven today.”

Lindsey was in disbelief. She had never let myself believe that death was in the near future for her mom. Though she immediately broke down in tears, she also felt an indescribably peace knowing that she also had the hope of seeing her mom again in heaven. Their family was also reassured by the fact that their mom indeed was in complete remission – in heaven – and never again would she had to experience the pains of this earth because she was now made perfect.

Lindsey did not come out with her story just because she knew that her mom was now in heaven and because God has stayed alongside her through this whole time that she wasn’t sad about what happened. Of course, she didn’t understand why she would no longer have a mom to have girl talk with or a mom to go shopping with or why now she was stuck living with two boys or why most girls are going to have their mom helping them get ready on their wedding days and Lindsey wouldn’t. But, Lindsey did know one this- that God has a reason for everything He does and she was never mad at God for one second for taking her mom away from her. Lindsey and Casey knew that without the amazing grace of God there is no way they could have ever gone through this situation.

Lindsay told her youth group that none of us really ever see death coming although we all know it’s inevitable. Death is a hard thing to understand and she doubted if any of us will fully understand it. But Lindsey did know that as Christians, we have an amazing hope and a great comforter. God’s words are true where He says in Proverbs 14:

“In times of trouble the wicked are destroyed, but even at death the innocent have faith”.

Lindsey and Casey believe that this is true and also believe that one day they will be reunited with our mom again.


Why were Lindsey and Casey able to share such a personal and tragic story that stirred up all of their emotions again? I mean, that was big. It’s because they’re not running from death. Don’t run from it. Face it. It is inevitable. Embrace it. Help other people through it. Allow God to do something big in your life. Don’t run from it.

One more thing we can learn tonight, and then we’re done…

3. Consider how ETERNITY gives you hope for TODAY

Did you hear the words that Lindsay said? Peace. Hope. How was she able to say those words? How can these guys talk about their mom whom they loved so much who they just lost and they feel this sense of peace? Because they understand eternity. They understand that death is not depressing. Death is depressing if you believe that life ends at the grave. But the Bible speaks with such confidence that there is a life beyond death. And eternal life takes the sting out of death.

2 Corinthians 4:17 says:

“We have small troubles for a while now, but they are helping us gain an eternal glory that is much greater than the troubles. We set our eyes not only on what we see but on what we cannot see. What we see will last only a short time, but what we cannot see will last forever.” FOREVER.

John 3:16 – Most of you have this memorized. If you don’t I encourage you to memorize it. “God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him may not be lost, but have eternal life.” ETERNAL.

John 11:25, Jesus speaking, “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in Me will have life even if they die.’” LIFE.

Look at the three words I just emphasized- Forever, eternal, life. That’s what the Bible teaches that if you have a relationship with God you will have forever eternal life. If you embrace God’s plan for all of humanity – here’s His plan in a nutshell: God created you, He wants a relationship with you, that when you die you’re going to be either with Him for eternity or separated from Him for eternity.

Forever eternal life. When you have a relationship here’s what He does:
• He forgives you of your past, every thing you’ve ever done.
• He gives you a plan for living today.
• And He gives you hope for a future.

That’s how eternity can give you hope for today. What does the future look like? I don’t know. What does heaven look like? I have no idea. But I do know what the Bible says. There’s going to be no pain. There’s going to be no tears.

A lot of us in here we think, “Heaven’s for sissies! It’s just a bunch of fairies running around on clouds playing harps. That type of thing.”

But listen to me on this - the same God that made earth also made heaven. Just look around earth. You see colors and shapes and tastes and smells and varieties. You see an ocean and the beauty of a sunset and rainbows and mountains. All those things that give us pleasure. The same God that made those on earth, heaven is going to be even greater than that. I tell people, you dream about your greatest day you’ve ever had on earth and heaven is going to be better than that every single day.

I was speaking with someone last night online who had some of the same questions about heaven that I think all of us do. Regardless of the mystery, let me tell you some of the things the Bible says about heaven. It says it’s a place where God dwells. A place of righteousness where you can worship God there. There’s no hunger, no thirst, no tears, no death, no pain, no hard labor, and no sadness.

God has reserved that place in eternity for His children. Everybody is a creation of God but only those who say yes to Him and develop a relationship to Him the Bible teaches are children of God.

You just ask Him to come into your life. You invite Him in to be the Lord and Savior of your life. He promises forgiveness for your past, a plan for today, and hope for the future. It’s a gift. It’s a gift you can’t earn. It’s a gift you don’t deserve. It’s a gift that will never go out of style. It’s a gift that doesn’t need batteries. It’s a gift that won’t shrink. It’s a gift that doesn’t get rusty. It’s a free gift.

If you’re here today and you’ve never received that free gift you can do so very simply with a prayer. Just ask Him.

If you’re a Christian, today is a good day. Good news. Celebrate. Eternal life forever. Celebrate with Casey and Lindsay and their dad that their mom is in a much better place - in the presence of God. Celebrate with Kyle Whitty that Ashleigh is chasing butterflies in golden fields in heaven.

But if you haven’t started that relationship, if you’re living out on your own, my encouragement to you is to settle that account. Prepare yourself for eternity.

That’s a lot to think about. Tonight’s kind of a heavy night. But thanks for listening. Thanks for caring about your life. Thanks for being wise and thinking about death because your life will be better because of it.

Let’s Pray:

As you bow your heads, I want to read you this last verse. Jesus is speaking. Just close your eyes and imagine Him saying this to you. “Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust in Me. There are many rooms in My Father's house; I would not tell you this if it were not true. I am going there to prepare a place for you. After I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me so that you may be where I am.”

If you want to be where God is when your life comes to an end I encourage you to prepare for that now. Be wise. I’m going to say a little prayer. You can just repeat it after me in the silence of your heart if you’ve never done that:
“There have been many wrong things that I’ve done in my life that have kept me from having a relationship with You, God. I realize I can’t live on my own. Instead I need You to come into my life and forgive me of my sins and control my life. Because of that, I invite You to do that right now. Come in and cleanse me. And, God, please don’t stop there. I need Your help today and tomorrow and for the rest of my days. Thank You for coming into my life. Thank You for teaching me about life through death.”

God, thanks for hearing our prayers. Thanks for loving us. May we be different people because we’re been here tonight. We pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.