Last night I worked the third of three 12-hour shifts in a row in the ER for the week. At about 1:00 am I took report from an off-going mid-shift nurse and took responsibility for her patients. One was a terminally ill cancer patient with only a few weeks or months left to live. I met him for the first time to give him some comfort medications, a list of prescriptions, and discharge him home. I addressed him as I do all my patients, with care and respect, honoring him and the God who created him with the intent for his abundant life. As I took out his IV catheter, I inquired whether he was prepared for his death, and whether he and I would meet again before our Creator. He assured me he was secure in his eternal home, and I told him how relieved I was that we would have eternity to catch up. Before he left, he told me that in the brief ten or fifteen minutes he had known me, I had treated him with more loving compassion than anyone in his many visits to any hospital or care center he had visited in his extensive cancer treatment. 

I hope the light this man saw in me was the reflection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and not just Todd Lemmon’s glowing personality. I hope that the feedback I got from this man well-seasoned in his exposure to healthcare was an accurate assessment of the care I give all my patients. I hope I continue to have the opportunity to love the hurting, minister to the sick and dying, and prepare the souls of all I meet for a glorious life after this earthly one. I hope in my sharing this anecdote, you are encouraged to love the people you meet today as if it is the last chance you get. I hope we all get to gather around our Lord’s table one day and share stories of how some stranger made a difference in our lives. I hope your crown of glory shines like the noonday. I hope mine does too.