Are You Dead?

That may strike you as a strange question, but for Jeanne Pouchain, it became personal.

She had to prove she had not died.

In 2017, a French court pronounced the 58-year-old French woman dead. A disgruntled former employee whom Pouchain fired filed a lawsuit for lost wages. When Pouchain stopped responding to the plaintiff’s letters, lawyers argued she had died.

No evidence was found to the contrary, so they proclaimed it official. Due to that one ruling, public authorities started purging Pouchain’s existence from all official records. As a result, she lost her identity and licenses. Banks closed accounts, and she cannot purchase insurance.

Now, she must try to prove she is alive.

What evidence do you have? When John wrote the church at Sardis, he delivered God’s message to them.

“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” (Revelation 3:1)

When God inspected their lives, he found corpses lacking vitality. The members of that church lacked the vigor to influence their own community.

John had a single phrase for them. “Wake up.” It was time to rouse the sedate into faith that broke into passion’s flame.

For Pouchain, her campaign to prove her existence included an affidavit from her doctor. Whether it proves enough remains to be seen.

But the question remains. Is anyone sure you are not dead? Let your life prove them wrong.