The first monks/hermits of the Catholic Church, dating back to the first 100 years after Jesus rose from dead, would say, “Baptism is the only death that matters.” What did they mean by that?
Baptism causes the person being baptized to die and rise from the dead. Every person who is baptized dies to their “old self,” completely covered in original sin, and they rise from the font as Jesus rose from His tomb a “new self,” configured to Jesus Christ. St. Paul says it best in his letter to the Romans: “When we were baptized, we died and were buried with Christ. We were baptized, so we would live a new life, as Christ was raised to life by the glory of God the Father.” (Romans 6:4) I highly recommend reading Romans 6: 4-23.
There’s no need to fear physical death if you’ve been Baptized into the Body of Christ, because Baptism is the only death that matters. After you’ve died to your old self in the font, physical death is a doorway to eternal life and if we’ve followed Jesus there’s nothing to fear about that doorway. If we’ve followed the darkness of sin over the light of Christ, then you have reason to be fearful, BUT JESUS LEFT US THE SACRAMENTS TO TURN AWAY FROM SIN AND FOLLOW THE LIGHT OF CHRIST!!! REPENT AND FOLLOW HIM!!!
My sisters and brothers, heaven must be our goal and as long as we have breath in our lungs we have time to achieve that goal through the Seven Sacraments. If you’re already baptized and feel far from God, who is Love, God is waiting for you here in the Eucharist and in our community of faith. Run, don’t walk, back to Him. Prioritize daily prayer, Sunday Mass, and being forgiven of sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.