During the 1990s, an old west Marshall had been captured by the villains and they were getting ready to hang him. With a sneer, one of the outlaws asked, “Any last words, Marshall?” The Marshall defiantly replies, “Nope.” Then, the outlaw says, “What do you want on your tombstone?” Thinking for just a moment, the Marshall finally replies, “Pepperoni and cheese.” It was a commercial for Tombstone brand pizza.
Through the centuries, people have taken some interesting liberties with their tombstone messages. Blossom.com has pictures of several tombstones and their final thoughts. All are not appropriate! The ones that were had a bit of humor that caused me to smile.
Mel Blanc, known as “The Man of a 1000 Voices,” had his famous Porky the Pig line added to his tombstone. “That’s all, folks!” Merv Griffin’s tombstone says, “I will not be right back after this message.” And Robert Ripley’s says, “Ripley’s Believe It or Not,” written in the famous script.
Some women guard secret recipes like it’s a national treasure. “I’ll take this recipe to the grave with me before giving it to anyone else,” they say. Most people look in a cookbook for a recipe but if you are in the right cemetery, you might find a recipe on the back of a headstone. Family members used the back of the headstone to share “Kay’s Fudge” recipe including all ingredients and instructions. Another had “Mom’s Christmas Cookies” recipe. It’s all listed just like it would be on a recipe card. Technically, these women did take their recipes to the grave.
There are others that are just humorous.
“Here lies John Yeast. Pardon me for not rising.”
“Raised four beautiful daughters with only one bathroom and still there was love.”
“I told you I was sick.”
Then, there are those where I’m sure no humor was intended but it just happened. One family’s last name was Burger and there were numerous headstones with that last name in a row. In the next row were the Fries. So, there you have it – burger and fries at the cemetery.
Now THAT’s funny!
I’ve never thought about what I would want inscribed on my tombstone but I have a
feeling that the Apostle Paul’s said, “I Fought A Good Fight.” Knowing his death was coming soon, Paul was inspired to write 2 Timothy 4:6-7. “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. (7) I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” What a great testimony of a life changed BY God, FOR God.
I have kept the faith. Paul’s salvation testimony is certainly remarkable and it can be found in Acts 9. But, Paul wasn’t telling us that he kept the saving faith that had been granted to him. We do nothing to obtain salvation and we do nothing to keep it. Instead, the Believer’s Bible Commentary explains it this way. Paul is saying that he had “continued to believe in and obey the great doctrines of the Christian faith, but also that, as a steward, he had guarded the doctrine which had been committed to him and had passed it on to others in its original purity.”
I have fought a good fight. The Christian life is a day to day battle against the enemy, Satan, and all that Satan represents in this world. Ephesians 6:12 says, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” We never get a break from this fight and Paul proclaims that he has kept up that fight.
I have finished my course. He didn’t quit along the way when things got tough – and boy, did they get tough!! God set Paul on a course that began on the road to Damascus. Paul stayed true to the mission to which God had called.
What an inspiration and example to ALL believers!!
To further encourage us, Paul wrote 1 Timothy 6:12. “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.”
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