Hope
That Never Fades
In his great mercy he has given us new
birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
from the dead and into an inheritance that can
never perish, spoil or fade.
1 Peter 1:3, 4
It had been five weeks since Matt had
been laid to rest. Those five weeks had been a time of reflection for
Kim, recalling different events God had used to weld her and Matt’s
lives into a strong marriage. As much as she missed Matt she was
thankful for their more than thirty years together.
These five weeks had also been a time
of agonized waiting, waiting to say goodbye to another precious
member of her family. That’s what they were doing this morning,
saying goodbye to her son, Ryan, who had succumbed to ALS at the
early age of twenty-seven. This morning Kim was helping her
daughter-in-law, Michael, make final arrangements. Occasionally, the
sorrow would overcome one of them and they would stop what they were
doing and just embrace each other.
Were it not for their faith, they might
have easily found themselves raising their fists to God in anger.
Instead, they spoke fondly of special times spent with their spouses.
In truth, they were thankful that God had not allowed father or son
to languish and suffer long illnesses.
†
When someone we love is taken from us
the shock of their death can take a while to register. When it does
there is sorrow and grief, with a sense of loss that feels as if it
will never go away. As Christians, we can take comfort in the fact
that our parting and grief is temporal.
Although it has been some time since
their passing, Matt and Ryan’s physical loss is still deeply felt
by Kim and Michael. I’m equally confident both hold tightly to the
promise and hope of a Heavenly reunion.
It is this hope Jesus bought with His
blood on the cross of Calvary. And it is this knowledge that brings
comfort, and a hope that never fades.
Prayer
“May the hope and
promise of a grand reunion give us comfort, Lord. Amen.”
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