In the ministry one is occasionally present when death comes. In most cases breathing gradually comes to an end. The person simply breathes no more.
It was so when we stood by at the death of Jean’s mom some years ago. And so it was again when my mother breathed out her last breath.
When breathing ceases life ceases. Perhaps it is from the observance of this simple fact that the Genesis poet describes the creation of a human being as the moment in which the Creator “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a human being.”
The biblical story ties breath, life and spirit together. In the mystery of life there is spirit or soul.
My mother taught us to pray at bed-time the little prayer:
Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray Thee Lord my soul to keep.It was an awesome prayer for the beginning of the night. I used to wonder what my soul was, and where. Why did it need keeping in the night?
The prayer continued into even deeper and darker mystery:
If I should die before I wake, I pray Thee Lord my soul to take.I felt helpless before the possibility. I tried to stay awake in order to remain in charge of my own destiny. Ultimately I gave way to sleep and the hope I would awake in the morning. In time my waking up seemed so assured that I forget to worry.
The idea of “the Lord” lying in wait for my soul troubled me. Then I decided that maybe the Lord was there “just in case,” as a safety net to see that my soul didn’t just disappear.
Finally, the whole idea was nonsense.
Until my mother slipped into her last sleep while breathing her last breaths. I found myself praying for her the prayer she prayed for me:
Now I lay her down to sleep, I pray Thee Lord her soul to keep.Then we whispered into her ear our love and spoke the words we would sing at her memorial gathering:
If she should die before she wakes, I pray Thee Lord her soul to take.
Alleluia! The great storm is over, lift up your wings and fly….
Alleluia! The great storm is over, lift up your wings and fly.