Christmas has a very different feel this year. I left the living room where everyone was watching a sappy Lifetime movie, because after experiencing it in real life, I don't have much interest sitting through a dramatic made for TV movie.
I remember the first time I saw Terry & Shari. It was Abbie's first year at Hillsdale Christian. She was in 1st grade. We were at school for the Grandparents Day program in the Fall & besides the 1st day of school, (where my focus was solely on my daughter) it was the first time I got to meet fellow parents & students - nerve wracking to say the least. There they were, a picture perfect couple. Abbie & their daughter, Jordyn, became instant best friends & decided all the similarities between them could have made them sisters. By the following year, our daughter's friendship compelled us to get to know this family. We invited them for supper & they invited us. Soon what was intimidating became comfortable & we were able to talk, joke, & learn about each other.
Two years after we met, we were shocked to hear that Terry had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. The diagnosis wasn't good. He was diagnosed in August & died on December 18th, the day after his 40th birthday, the day the kids got out of school for Christmas break.
I never did like funerals. The first funeral I attended was my Grandma's. I was in college & I bawled my eyes out. I think Phil thought I had lost it. As a pastor's kid, he attended hundreds of funerals & looked forward to the "funeral burgers" (as they called them) that were served after the service. He remembers playing in the church sanctuary before the casket was removed for the burial.
I would have never imagined two years ago that God would ask me to be there, not just for the funeral, but for the last breaths. I can see now that He prepared me for it, but if He had asked me, I would have said "no". But that is the amazing thing about God. He walks you through one step at a time...all I had to do was obey in the moment. I didn't do anything spectacular. I just got to be a part of something...miraculous.
1 comment:
I don't know if I'm just hearing it more at Christmastime but there have been a lot of sickness, loss of jobs and death in our church family recently. Most of the people I don't know well so it doesn't hurt as much. My 26 year old cousin is in the hospital right now diagnosed with stage IV cancer that he only found out about maybe two weeks ago. The only "good" thing about all this sadness at Christmastime is remembering the hope that God offered us by sending Christ to earth.
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