Dessert Is Coming, So Don’t Ditch Your Fork

A simple request at a kitchen table changed how we think about endings. We share the story of a young woman who, facing a terminal diagnosis, asked to be buried with a fork in her right hand—and how that small, surprising symbol reframed grief, purpose, and the future. It’s five minutes of clarity that turns a familiar dinner phrase into a living hope: when the main course is cleared, dessert is coming.
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Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Daily Format
• 0:22 The Young Woman’s Unusual Request
• 1:36 Keep Your Fork: Meaning And Symbol
• 2:48 Life, Eternity, And Faith As The Fork
• 4:24 Scripture, Takeaway, And Closing

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:04

Good morning and welcome to Starting Right with Danny Mack. I'm going to be here every Monday to Friday to help you get a great five-minute start to your day. So grab your cup of coffee, sit back, relax, and let me help you start your day right. Every once in a while I come across a story that I figure that most of you have probably heard, but it's such a good story, I just can't help myself when it comes to sharing it with you. So today is one of those stories. It's the story of a young woman who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The doctors had given her three months to live, so she was preparing all the things she needed to do and getting everything in order. She contacted her pastor and asked him to come to her house and discuss her last wishes as to what she wanted in the funeral. They sat down and she served him some tea, and she told him the songs that she wanted in the service, which scriptures she would like read, and the outfit she wanted to be buried in. They spent some time talking together about her family and about the things that brought her joy in her life. The pastor did his best to encourage and to comfort her, and as he was about to leave they prayed a short prayer together. After the prayer, the woman looked up and said, Oh, there's one more thing. This is very important. I want to be buried with a fork in my right hand. The pastor stood there looking at her, not knowing quite what to say. That surprises you, doesn't it? she asked. Well, to be honest, I am really puzzled by it, said the pastor. The young woman explained. My grandmother once told me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to pass along its message to those I love and to those who are in need of encouragement. You see, in all my years of attending socials and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the main course were being cleared away, someone would always inevitably lean over and say keep your fork. It was my favorite part because I knew that something better was coming, like a velvety chocolate cake or a deep dish apple pie, something wonderful and with substance. So I just want people to see me there in the casket with a fork in my hand, and I want them to wonder what's with the fork. And then I want you to tell them. Tell them to keep your fork, that the best is yet to come. The pastor was overcome and his eyes filled with tears as he hugged the young woman goodbye. He knew that this was probably one of the last times he would see her before she died. But he also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven than he did. In fact, she probably had a better grasp of heaven than many people twice her age. She knew that something better was coming. At the funeral, people were walking by the young woman's casket. They saw the dress that she was wearing, and the fork placed in her right hand. Over and over the pastor heard the question What's with the fork? And over and over again he smiled. During his message the pastor told the people of the conversation he had had with the young woman. He also told them about the fork and about what it symbolized to her. He told them that he couldn't get her story of the fork out of his mind. It kept coming back to him again and again. He said we often look at our lives on this earth as being the main course, that this is everything that we have. We must focus on where we are now and make sure that we get everything perfect and right and live it whatever way we want in whatever way we can to get as much of it right now. But that's wrong. That's not the important part. The best part is what comes after. And that's why you need your fork. What we learn and respond to as we live this life will determine how we will spend eternity. What do we come to eternity with? And there's one thing that we need to experience the best of what is yet to come. We need the fork. And the fork for our lives is our faith. Whether or not we've committed our lives to Jesus Christ, whether or not we have this relationship with him, because that's the only thing that we will be able to take from this life into the next. And to be able to experience the next life, we need to have our faith. And the best is yet to come. He said one of the verses that this young woman wanted him to share with them was Romans chapter 8 and verse 18. The sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. The best is yet to come. And as the pastor closed that service, he again said to them, I will never forget about the fork, and now I doubt very much you will forget about it either. Isn't that a great story? The best is yet to come, my friends. Don't forget your fork. Have a great day. We'll talk again tomorrow. Thank you for listening today. And I invite you to join me Monday to Friday right here on Starting Right with Danny Mack.