EDITH EASTER
This is a true story, one that I promise you will never forget, and
one that will cause you to think of Easter in a totally different light.
The Lady's name was Edith Burns. She was a wonderful Christian who lived
in Texas. She was the patient of a fine Christian doctor who's name was Will
Phillips. Dr. Phillips was one of those
gentle doctors who saw patients as real people.
His favorite patient was Edith Burns. One morning he went to his
office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns. When he walked
into his waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap. She
was earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her.
Dr. Phillips knew why Edith was there and what she was doing. You
see, she had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name
is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the
meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved.
Dr. Phillips has a head nurse names Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith while taking her
blood pressure. Edith introduced herself by saying, "My name is Edith
Burns. Do you believe in Easter?"
Beverly said, "Why yes I do." Then Edith said,
"Well, what do you believe about Easter?"
The nurse replied, "Well, it's all about egg hunts, going to
church, and dressing up." But
Edith kept pressing her about the real meaning of Easter, and finally led her
to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Dr. Phillips approached Beverly and said, "Don't call Edith into
the office quite yet. I believe there is another delivery taking place in the
waiting room. Later on when called to
go back to the doctor's office, Edith sat down and when she took a look at the
doctor she said, "Dr. Will, why are you so sad? Are you reading your
Bible? Are you praying?"
The doctor said, "Now Edith, I'm the doctor and you're the patient." Then with a heavy heart he said, "your
lab report came back and it says you have cancer, and Edith, you're not going
to live very long."
Edith said, "Why Will Phillips, shame on you. Why are you so
sad? Do you think God makes mistakes?
You have just told me I'm going to see my precious Lord Jesus, my
husband, and my friends. You have just told me that I am going to celebrate
Easter forever, and here you are having difficulty giving me
my ticket!"
Dr. Phillips thought to himself, "What a magnificent woman
this Edith Burns is!"
Edith continued coming to Dr. Phillips every day. Christmas came
and the office was closed through January 3rd. On the day the office opened,
Edith did not show up. Later that afternoon, Edith called Dr. Phillips and
said she would have to be moving her story to the hospital and said, "Will,
I'm very near home, so would you make sure that they put women in here next to
me in my room who need to know about Easter.
Well, they did just that and women began to come in and share the
room with Edith. Many women were
gloriously saved. Everybody on the floor from staff to patients were so excited
about Edith, that they started calling her Edith Easter; that is everyone
except Phyllis Cross, the head nurse. She made it plain that she wanted nothing
to do with Edith because she was a "religious nut".
Phyllis had been a nurse in
an army hospital. She had seen it all and heard it all. She was the original
G.I. Jane. She had been married three times, she was hard, cold, and did
everything by the book.
Well, one morning the two nurses who were to attend to Edith were
sick. Edith had the flu and Phyllis Cross had to go in and give her a flu
shot. When she walked in, Edith had a
big smile on her face and said, "Phyllis, God loves you
and I love you, and I have been praying for you."
Phyllis said, "Well, you can quit praying for me, you
religious nut, it won't work. I'm not
interested."
Edith said, "Well, I will pray and I have asked God not to let
me go home until you come into the family."
The nurse responded, "Then you will never die because that
will never happen." She walked out of the room.
Every day Phyllis would walk into the room and Edith would say,
"God loves you Phyllis and I love you, and I'm praying for you." One
day the head nurse said she was literally drawn to Edith's room like a magnet
would draw iron. She sat down on the bed and Edith said, "I'm so glad you
have come Phyllis, because God told me
that today is your special day."
The nurse replied, "Edith, you have asked everybody here the
question, 'Do you believe in Easter?' but you have never asked me."
Edith said, "I have wanted to many times, but God told me to
wait until you asked, and now that you have asked..." then Edith took her
Bible and shared with Phyllis Cross the Easter Story of the death, burial and
resurrection of Jesus Christ. Then
Edith popped the big question, "Phyllis, do you believe in Easter? Do you
believe that Jesus Christ is alive and that He wants to live in your
heart?"
Phyllis said, "Oh I
want to believe that with all of my heart, and I do want Jesus in my life." And right then and there,
Phyllis prayed and invited Jesus Christ into her heart. For the first time in
her life she did not walk out of the hospital room, she was carried out on the wings of angels.
Two days later, Phyllis came in and Edith said, "Do you know
what day it is?"
Phyllis said, "Why Edith, it's Good Friday."
"Oh, no, for you every day is Easter. Happy Easter Phyllis!" And just two
days later, on Easter Sunday, Phyllis Cross came to work, performed some of her
duties and then went down to the flower
shop to get some Easter lilies because she wanted to go up to see Edith and give her some Easter lilies and wish her a
Happy Easter.
When she walked into Edith's room, Edith was in bed. That big
black Bible was on her lap. Her hands
were in that Bible. There was a sweet smile
on her face. When Phyllis went to pick up Edith's hand, she
realized Edith was dead.
Her left hand was on John 14: "In my Father's house are many
mansions. I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again
and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also."
Her right hand was on Revelation 21:4, "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes, there
shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed
away."
The nurse took one look at that dead body, and then lifted her face
toward heaven, and with tears streaming down her cheeks, said, "Happy
Easter, Edith - Happy Easter!"
Well, Phyllis Cross left Edith's body, walked out of the room, and over
to a table where two student nurses were sitting. She said, "My name
is Phyllis Cross. Do you believe in Easter?"
Author Unknown