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The Last Day

Last night, America, if not the entire world, paused to watch Kobe Bryant's last game. Tickets to see the much anticipated event commanding record sums. One report I read had the "cheap" seats in the nosebleed section for $685.00 per person. In some ways, last night's game was the millennials' version of the OJ Simspon verdict or the shooting of JFK. For years to come, people will talk about where they were and what they were doing when the Black Mamba played his last professional basketball game.



And play he did. His stats were on fire. Not only did he lead his team to victory one last time, but he did so by putting up 60 points on his own. Not to mention his assists and rebounds. It was a thing of beauty to behold. And bittersweet because it is the end of an era.



Amidst the postgame celebrations and heraldry, I began to think of the spiritual implications. Like the Apostle Paul, Kobe fought the good fight and finished his course. And like Paul, he remained faithful to the end.

But then again so had many other basketballs players. Every year, professional basketball players retire, but most never manage to do so with this much pomp and circumstance. The difference is that while all NBA players will retire at some point, not all will distinguish themselves while on the court the way Kobe Bryant did.

The same holds true for us as Christians. We will all come to the end of this life. The question is: will our departure from this world be meek and humble without much ceremony? Or will our departure from this life be a bittersweet celebration?

My father's homegoing was a celebration. More so than I could have ever expected. He had touched so many souls and enriched so many lives that while his relocation to Heaven brought sadness because he was no longer with us, it was also a grand celebration because of how he lived.

If Kobe's last game teaches us anything, it is how to do the thing right. He wasn't a perfect player (being plagued with injuries in the last couple of seasons), he wasn't a perfect man (having his own personal scandals to overcome), but he was the perfect example of tenacity and commitment. I'm sure there were many occasions when the easier and more convenient thing to do would have been to give up and walk away from the sport that he loved. But he didn't.

So too, we as Christians must persevere through inconvenience heartache and pain and run this race that is set before us. And run it well. We may not get the kind of national coverage that Kobe's last game garnered, but that great witness cloud in Heaven is looking on. And our Heavenly Father is expecting us to finish strong, even in our last game.

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