Kicking the Bucket List by Patti Richter
[Note: Vern Buller grew up in Henderson, Nebraska. A similar version of this story first appeared in March, 2014 in the “faith†section of the BlueRibbonNews.com, serving areas east of Dallas, TX].
The American Dream, like everything in this modern age, has grown more sophisticated. It now includes the bucket list, that personal wish-list of things we most desire to accomplish before our time on earth expires.
The bucket list sounds good to me. My own list already has three items: tour Israel; take a mission trip to Asia; publish an inspirational book. All God-honoring desires, I believe. But then along comes a Bible verse that throws a glitch in the software of my heart and mind. James 4:15 says: “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that’†(ESV).
There’s risk in heeding that admonition. What if God says no to my plans or suggests something more suited to his purposes?
I’ve pondered this question more since becoming acquainted with an older couple living in Spokane, Washington. Vern and Loretta Buller had good retirement goals following his 35-year banking career. They planned to get more involved in their church and in charitable work in their community. They also hoped to travel the country and abroad. But Vern says the Lord laid a certain verse on his heart: “And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning†(Job 42:12).
That brief verse stirred a passion in the Bullers to use their remaining days to make a difference in the lives of others for the sake of the Gospel. They allowed God to revise their bucket list, with no idea what far-reaching results would follow.
Volunteering with a refugee resettlement program in 2007, they welcomed a Chin-Burmese family from Myanmar into their home until living arrangements could be made. Before eating a meal together the first night, Vern offered a gentle testimony: “We are Christians; we pray before meals. OK?â€
It turned out the refugee family had prayed for a Christian host family. Vern and Loretta heard all about their Bible school and mission work in northern Myanmar (formerly Burma). This new relationship gradually led to the retired couple’s support of several indigenous pastors and missionaries in that long-oppressed country.
Vern and Loretta felt God leading them to help churches, orphanages and evangelistic efforts in the mostly Buddhist country, which wasn’t easy to do before Myanmar opened to the West in 2010. They had to trust foreign intermediaries to wire sometimes large amounts of money for things like motorcycles—so the missionaries could travel greater distances.
By request, Vern sought out an evangelistic tract that would translate well into Burmese. The tract he found also resulted in a ministry grant to fund the printing of 50,000 copies. When the grant ran out, the couple continued to personally fund additional copies, not only in Burmese, but in eight more dialects—so far. They continue to fill requests for more tracts, Bibles and discipleship resources. Many hundreds of Burmese people have come to faith in Jesus Christ through the efforts the Bullers support.
The couple never did get around to seeing the world. Loretta says they’ve been privileged instead to see souls come into the kingdom of heaven. Vern says that when we’re willing to step out in faith and give God all the glory, we receive the desires of our hearts.
And that sounds better than a bucket list to me.
Patti Richter is a Christian journalist in north Texas and writes regular feature stories, essays and reviews for several publications.
