heaven

Christmas for You, in 60-Seconds

Jesus, God’s only begotten son, vacated his right place in heaven, therefore giving up his Godhood, to become one of us!  He was born to a woman named Mary and came to carry out a mission: to make way for the salvation of all humankind.

Of course he succeeded!

Jesus grew up, lived a sinless life, rallied many toward the Kingdom of Heaven, and then died upon a cross, sacrificially shedding his blood in the ultimate act of forgiving all of us of all of our sins.  He died for every bad thing, every bad thought, every lie, every hurt. Three days later he arose from the dead.

All you have to do is believe this, willingly receive Him as your Savior, trust him as Lord of your life, and you will be saved from an eternity in Hell and instead be guaranteed life in Heaven. He will then place His Spirit within you, to empower you to live as He would have you to live.

As the Bible says:

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9).

Perhaps a simple prayer for you could be: Lord Jesus, I need your forgiveness, please take away my hurts and pain, and fill me with joy. I surrender my life to you. Empower me to do this Lord, because I can’t do it on my own. Amen.

Find a Bible and read the Gospel of John. You will love it.

Merry Christmas from the Sussman household to yours!

This was originally published on December 24, 2013, and updated Christmas day 2022.

Visiting for the last time

I’m in Chicago visiting my mother after purchasing a one-way ticket from my home in California.

I was just here two weeks ago.

I rushed out then for a visit because Mom, for some unknown reason, asked me to.  It was obvious to me that she hadn’t been feeling 100 percent when I visited her back in February, and from subsequent phone conversations it seemed she was strangely declining.  Indeed, the visit two weeks ago confirmed my suspicions: she was not well at all.  In fact I was so taken-a-back and concerned that, at my urging, we I visited several independent/assisted care living facilities.  However, both my brother (who drove in from Cleveland) and I couldn’t put a finger on what was physically wrong with Mom, and she wasn’t talking.

Then, 10-days after that visit, she took a major fall and was rushed to the hospital by ambulance where she received 8 staples in the back of her head.

It was in the emergency room the physicians realized something was amiss: her vitals were off.  Way off.

Through subsequent tests they discovered Mom had advanced liver and kidney cancer for which, at her age, there is no cure. We knew she had a recent bout with bladder cancer, but that appeared to be under control.  This new diagnosis was sobering.

It made us wonder why she hadn’t complained to her doctor about her issues, especially given the fact she is a Registered Nurse?  All I do know is this 87-year-old dynamo was powering through the debilitating symptoms of a deadly disease–and never once complained.

I arrived to see Mom lying is a hospital bed, asleep, and not looking anything like she did two weeks prior, let alone her appearance back in February.

The doctors say we’re talking days or, at most, weeks.

Early this morning, during a particularly lucid moment, I shared with her the sad news.  But I also shared the good news, that there is a Savior in Heaven who has a place prepared for her.  She smiled, nodded her head, and squeezed my hand.  More on that poignant conversation at another time.

In the meantime, tomorrow I will share further thoughts on life, and death, and eternity.

Also, if I can muster the composure, I may put my thoughts together as a part of my weekly Hidden Headlines Podcast.

Check back and thanks for allowing me to share.

Meantime, thanks for your prayers.

I Miss You, Kenny

It was the worst day, and week, of my life. But God used it for His glory.

On this date many years ago my life, and the lives of many, were changed forever.

I had just concluded a Pop Warner football game and was back home, out of my uniform, ready to get on with the rest of my weekend.  I heard some sirens and looked out the front window just as an ambulance whizzed by the house. Curious, I hopped on my bike and took off in the direction of the speeding emergency vehicle.

I didn’t have to travel far before I arrived at the scene.  There was a young boy, about my age, lying motionless next to the curb.  A bike was nearby, twisted like a pretzel.   A small black sports car was parked awkwardly in the street with a dented front end.  Two shoes were strewn on the pavement.

“Who is it?” I asked a buddy as a crowd  began to gather.

“I dunno.”

The young victim’s head had experienced so much trauma we couldn’t recognize him.

I watched, stunned,  as they took the boy’s body and placed it in the ambulance. Apparently he was still alive they said.  That was good–right?

But then I saw two adults get into the ambulance.  They were my friend Kenny’s mom and dad.  They looked awful.  I instantly put it all together.  I had just played football with their son hours earlier.  He was coming over to my house on his bike to goof around after the game.  Somehow he was hit by the car.

Kenny didn’t last but a few hours.  I’ll never forget my dad getting the call from our coach that Kenny was gone.  My old man set down the phone, walked over the the liqueur cabinet and poured himself a stiff one.  He sat still for a minute or so, fighting back tears.  Then he walked into the adjacent room where I’d been watching him.

My dad had seen a lot of bad stuff in his life.  Years later he said giving me that bad news was the hardest thing he ever had to do.

I was a pallbearer at Kenny’s funeral three days later.

My life went sideways for many years after that.  I had so many questions about life…and death.  Thank God those questions were eventually answered.

14 years after Kenny’s death I contacted his mom via letter.  I was moved as I read her reply.  She told me, “For at least two years I cried everyday.  I just couldn’t seem to get over it.”

However  she went on to describe meeting some wonderful followers of Jesus who lovingly ministered to her regularly.

“I finally realized that I would be able to see and be with Ken again,” she wrote. “It says in the Bible that in the last days that the dead who believed in Christ will rise in the air and we that are here on earth that love the Lord will be caught-up together to be with our loved-ones, to be with them forever, and there will be no more death, tears or crying. When I finally got this through my head I was able to live with this tragic event that happened to Ken.”

I still miss you, Kenny.  Because of your death, I came to know Jesus as Messiah.  As I’ve shared about your death, many hundreds have come to know Him as well.  I take pleasure in knowing we’ll meet up again.

And by the way, I can’t wait to throw the football around with you too.