Well Done!

Everyone expects old people to die. That is to say, at least when they die it’s not as surprising as when a young, beautiful, passionate follower of Jesus is suddenly taken from this earth. Two days ago, a wonderful Ukrainian friend, sister, and missionary, Ira Zakharova, was ushered into the throne room of heaven. In my mind’s eye I can see the angels rejoicing, the Son rising to meet His beloved, and the Father satisfyingly proclaiming for all of heaven to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of the Lord.”

Going away party when we moved from Ukraine to Kyrgyzstan. Ira is in the middle.

The life well-lived is a life dedicated to God. This is the only way to have a full life. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” The full life begins with a death—death to the fleshly nature, to carnal passions, to the sin that so easily entangles us, to our own self-will. Life then truly begins—new life in Christ, a pure cleansing, inexplicable joy, victory, and heart bursting with hope! Ira lived a full life even though she was taken to be with God at such a young age. Her passing reminds me of the verse, “Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” Ira walked with God and is no longer on this earth, for the Lord has taken her.

Ira is now living the fulfilled promise. She is now living the completed life. And although the rest of us still gaze into heaven with questioning wonder, heaven has become even more real, even more of a desire, and even more of an expectant and glorious hope. Heaven has come near! I find that as more people whom I love pass into eternity, the more I long for heaven. The completed life is a life that no longer sees corruption. “The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” In Christ we can live the full life this side of heaven, and then finally realize the completed life when we enter into glory.

Last gathering on the bank of the Dnieper in Kyiv. Picture taken by Ira.

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” Not me. My eyes are filled with tears. Ira’s eyes are filled with Jesus. And His eyes are filled with delight as He rejoices over His friend, Ira, with gladness, as He quiets her with His love, and as He rejoices over her with singing. Well done, Ira. See you soon. I miss you so much.

Scriptures Used

Matthew 25:21
John 10:10b
Genesis 5:24
I Corinthians 15:42-43
Psalm 116:15

St. Cloud Worship & Missions Evening

It was an honor to be included in the Worship & Missions Evening at Calvary Chapel St. Cloud. Well, although we were not there physically, our information and copies of Distant Fields were available.

Thank you Calvary Chapel St. Cloud for sharing about the past and present work that is taking places in so many parts of the world!

Goodreads Review of Distant Fields!

“Distant Fields by Jed Gourley proved to be one of those books, one of those stories that would confirm that God can use anyone regardless of background, if they would surrender completely to Him. I’ve always enjoyed reading missionary stories such as the Hudson twins to Asia, or of the Elliots and their fateful trip into Inca territory. I’ve enjoyed stories such as “God’s Smuggler” about Brother Andrew, “Tortured for Christ” about Wirmbrand, and like George, I too have read “Revolution in World Missions”. So to read George’s story and to discover myself a contemporary to half his children, was amazing. Then to discover that he had some of the same character-quirk hang-ups that I do, made the ability to relate even stronger.

The style of writing was very personal, like that of reading a memoire more than a biography of one’s life. Eventually I’d discover that the author was (spoiler alert) married to one of George’s kids. This made the telling of the story very personal, and it was impossible to miss the growing sense of “goodbye” that was looming as the author approached the latter pages of the book. Most professional editors would have had a conniption at Jed’s sentence fragments, or worse, at his use of the occasional single-word sentence, but he was writing this way on purpose. This book is a very personal work, and to remove some of the conversational structure of the writing would have been to render it’s heart anemic. The telling of this story was both personal and introductory.

As I sit here now writing out my thoughts, I too am left with a sense of what this world has lost. I look forward to meeting George in heaven one day and am grateful to hear that his family continues to reach out to people on the mission field and at home.”

By Marilynn Dawson
Author of “Becoming the Bride of Christ: A Personal Journey”, “Mom’s Little Black Book: Godly Advice for the High School Graduate”, “Practical Thoughts on Becoming an Author” and “Dressed for Eternity”.