I listened to a national radio talk host mention the tragedy at Sea World this week where a trainer was killed by a killer whale. He made the statement to his audience, “we never know when any of us will be called home.” His obvious inference is that none of us are promised a long life and that any day could be our last one.
Now I’m sure all our hearts go out to the family of the one whose life was taken in this unusual event. It is always painful when we hear of someone taken in the early prime of their life, no matter what the circumstance may be surrounding it. However, the point that caught my attention was not the circumstances of the tragedy; rather it was that phrase, “when any of us will be called home.”
Immediately my mind was filled with a familiar sound of a bell ringing. As a child (the oldest of 7) my mother had a unique way of letting us know that dinner was almost ready. My mom had what I would call an old, hand-held school bell that could be heard for several blocks. Many of my childhood years were lived on an Air Force base, but you could still hear the bell when she rang it and it was serving notice that you were being “called home”. That distinctive ring of the bell declared that you had 10 minutes to get home, clean up and get to the dinner table. And believe me when I tell you that to say, “I didn’t hear the bell” didn’t get you anywhere but deeper in trouble than you were already in for being late.
“Called home” – all kinds of thoughts come to mind with that statement:
- A college student telling his friends that they had called home for some money.
- A spouse that called home to leave a message for their loved one concerning a change in their schedule.
- An elderly individual that has lived a full life and has passed into eternity we say has been “called home”.
The majority of people believe in an “after-life” but it isn’t something that many talk about. After all, it is a sobering subject and not one that many are ready to seriously entertain [this I know from having sold life insurance for several years]. Yet, it is very real and relatively very close to each of us [one last breath].
So it’s with interest when someone says, “They were called home” that I wonder, “Where is home for that person? Where is their eternal home?”
In John’s Gospel, chapter 8, verse 44, Jesus said, “You belong to your father, the devil…” This Jesus spoke to the Pharisees, the religious leaders of his day “…your father, the devil…”—and we all know where his home is.
Now some will mock this writing and boastfully declare, “I’m going to hell and all my friends will be there too.” I’ve heard many people over the years make that statement but when death is knocking at their door, they aren’t so arrogant. I’ve prayed many times for God’s mercy that they would have the opportunity to find a “new home” before that last breath comes. Those that repent of their sins and trust Jesus Christ, find a new residence when that time comes that they are “called home” – heaven becomes their new home.
So the next time you hear a bell ringing, ask yourself, “If the bell tolls and calls me home, where will I be?”

