Last month my wife's great grandmother went home to be with the Lord. She was a God fearing woman who walked with God the majority of her life. I remember attending the funeral and being filled with sadness but at the same time rejoicing because I knew that one day I would see her again.
After the funeral there was a grave side service behind the church. Looking around the graveyard I couldn't help but contemplate the fact that beneath my feet were men and women who once had youthful skin and quick steps and hectic calendars but who are now piles of forgotten bones. I thought about the fact that the scattered teeth in the earth below had once sang hymns of hope-maybe "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder I'll Be There" or "When We All Get to Heaven." They are silent now.
But while I was there, I couldn't help but think about all that I was learning in Theology. I couldn't help but think about what every generation of Christian has held against the threat of sword, guillotine, sickness, chemical weaponry, and death. The majority of Christians down through the ages have taken comfort in the fact that one day this stillness will be interrupted by a shout from the eastern sky, a joyful call with a distinctly northern Galilean accent. In that moment the dead in Christ will rise from the grave and those of us who are believers will be caught up into Heaven in the twinkling of an eye and that's when life really gets interesting!
After the funeral there was a grave side service behind the church. Looking around the graveyard I couldn't help but contemplate the fact that beneath my feet were men and women who once had youthful skin and quick steps and hectic calendars but who are now piles of forgotten bones. I thought about the fact that the scattered teeth in the earth below had once sang hymns of hope-maybe "When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder I'll Be There" or "When We All Get to Heaven." They are silent now.
But while I was there, I couldn't help but think about all that I was learning in Theology. I couldn't help but think about what every generation of Christian has held against the threat of sword, guillotine, sickness, chemical weaponry, and death. The majority of Christians down through the ages have taken comfort in the fact that one day this stillness will be interrupted by a shout from the eastern sky, a joyful call with a distinctly northern Galilean accent. In that moment the dead in Christ will rise from the grave and those of us who are believers will be caught up into Heaven in the twinkling of an eye and that's when life really gets interesting!
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