These days, whenever I happen to see a rerun of this old movie (as I did recently), I think of the lines to Andy Griggs’ hit 2004 single titled If Heaven:
If heaven was an hour, it would be twilight
When the fireflies start their dancin' on the lawn
And supper's on the stove and mamma's laughin'
And everybody's workin' day is done.
The song is written from the perspective of man who is dying. And the chorus is especially poignant.
If heaven was a town, it would be my town
Oh, on a summer day in 1985
And everything I wanted was out there waitin'
And everyone I loved was still alive.
There comes a time we all must say goodbye
And if that's what heaven's made of
You know I ain't afraid to die.
Don't cry a tear for me now baby
There comes a time we all must say goodbye
And if that's what heaven's made of
You know I ain't afraid to die.
Yeah, if that's what heaven's made of
You know I ain't afraid to die.
Griggs’ song itself may well have been partly inspired by an earlier classic by country music superstar Jim Reeves. He had a hit back in the 1959’s with song titled “Suppertime”.
Many years ago in days of childhood,
I used to play till evenin' shadows come.
Then windin' down that old familiar pathway,
I'd hear my mother call at set of sun.
Come home, come home it's supper time,
The shadows lengthen fast.
Come home, come home it's supper time,
We're going home at last.
Some of the fondest memories of my childhood
Were woven around supper time.
When my mother used to call
From the back steps of the old homeplace
“Come on home now son, it's supper time.”
Ah, but I'd love to hear that once more.
But you know for me time has woven the realization of
The truth that's even more thrilling and that's when
The call comes up from the portals of glory
To come home, for its supper time.
When all of God's children
Shall gather around the table
Of the Lord himself,
And the greatest supper time of them all.
Come home, come home, it's supper time
The shadows lengthen fast. Come home, come home, it's supper time
We're going home at last!
I share all of these things in light of what the Apostle Paul had to say as he concluded his remarks on the Lord’s Supper in his First New Testament Letter to the Corinthians (chapter 11, verse 26): “For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
Until He comes! What a day, glorious day that will be. When He, the Lord Himself, comes for us; and when we will then gather around His table up in Heaven to celebrate the fact that we are finally and forever home!
In light of this, I conclude my thoughts today exactly as I did in my previous blog post - with this simple prayer: “Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!”
MOVIE SCRIPT SOURCE:
https://www.springfieldspringfield.co.uk/movie_script.php?movie=joe-kidd.
LYRICS SOURCES:
http://www.metrolyrics.com/if-heaven-lyrics-andy-griggs.html;
http://www.songlyrics.com/jim-reeves/suppertime-lyrics/.
SCRIPTURE SOURCES:
https://biblehub.com/niv/1_corinthians/11.htm;
https://biblehub.com/revelation/22-20.htm.