Heaven’s Heartbeat - Life Assurance
The dusty streets of Udaipur, India pulsed with life as dawn broke over the city.
Women balanced heavy water buckets and bundles of wood on their heads, moving with a graceful resolve through the crowds of people. Metalworkers crouched over their creations, hammers ringing against new pots in rhythmic cadence. Open cooking fires spewed smoke into the dusty air, adding a shadowy canopy over the chaos. Trucks, carts and rickshas vied for space, horns blared, and cattle, indifferent to the commotion, roamed freely, blocking traffic.
Our driver, seemingly unfazed by the pandemonium surging around us, deftly navigated the Hindustan Ambassador through it all, finally breaking free to the city’s outskirts. An hour later, we arrived at the imposing gate guarding the steep, winding road to Bansdara Peak, a formidable three-mile ascent to the Monsoon Palace, perched at 3,100 feet.
My guide, sitting next to the driver in the front seat, turned to speak to me, his eyes locking onto mine with a seriousness that caught me off guard.
“Do you have life insurance?” he asked.
His thick Indian accent carried a weight that belied any jest. I chuckled out loud, thinking it a teasing remark, but his expression remained fixed, as his dark eyes studied me. After a long, silent moment I replied, “Yes, but why do you ask?” He leaned closer, his voice steady. “Because you may need it if you run to the top of this mountain.” I assured him that I was covered, but prayed I wouldn’t need to test that policy.
The climb was grueling, with steep, abrupt zigzags. I found myself wondering, “Am I climbing a stairway to heaven?” The sudden cries from a troop of monkeys shocked me back into the moment, as they loudly protested my intrusion.
Finally, I reached Monsoon Palace. I took a short break, downing a bottle of water before descending the steep road back to my starting point. It had been a tough run, to be sure, but no life insurance had been needed. My guide and driver awaited, and I couldn’t help but smile at their genuine concern for my family’s well-being.
That moment lingers in my memory, sparking a deeper reflection—and one I feel compelled to share. Beyond the practicalities of life insurance lies something far more sobering: life assurance.
The distinction is subtle yet far reaching. Even timeless.
Insurance guards against the uncertainties of life—accidents, illnesses or disasters that may or may not occur. It’s a safety net for the unpredictable. Assurance, however, anchors us in certainty. It’s the unwavering confidence in an outcome that will come to pass, though the timing remains unknown.
No doubt a life insurance policy would have helped my family if I had perished from heat exhaustion on the steamy slopes of Bansdara Peak.
But it wouldn’t have done a thing for me.
Life assurance, however, impacts my life for eternity. For me, that assurance is rooted in faith—trust in God’s salvation through Jesus the Messiah.
Life assurance through Jesus isn’t a policy against loss; it’s a promise of eternal gain. It’s the peace of knowing that when we draw our final breath—whether on a mountain trail or in a car wreck or in the quiet of our homes—we are held in a divine embrace that transcends time. The climb up Bansdara was a difficult challenge, but it pales in comparison to life’s greater journey. Each step we take, each trial we face, each puzzling dilemma that seems to yield no human answer is an opportunity to lean into the assurance Jesus offers us. Just as my guide cared for my physical safety, God’s love offers us spiritual certainty—a hope that endures beyond the changing chaos of this world.
I encourage you to reflect on this: Do you have life assurance? Not just the policies that protect against the “what-ifs,” but the deep, soul-steadying confidence in a future secured by faith in Jesus? Let this be your invitation to trust in something greater—really Someone greater—to find peace in the certainty of God’s plan. The streets of Udaipur taught me resilience; the climb to Monsoon Palace taught me endurance; but faith in Jesus teaches me assurance—a gift that carries us through this life and into eternity.
Do you have life assurance?
