More Thoughts in the Face of Loss

As I mentioned in the previous post, we are dealing with two recent deaths of family members. Another truth that has been reinforced for us in this time has been the importance of the local body, the community of faith. People from our church, Cornerstone Community Church, as well as some other Christian friends, have ministered to us in so many different ways. Different people kept our boys, brought food, helped out around our house, filled in gaps while I was gone, encouraged, prayed etc. People in my wife’s family began to comment on how special our church family must be simply by watching and hearing what people had done. Even in the visitation line when I would be introduced to someone, fairly often the person doing the introducing would say, “And they really have a special church family back home.” What a testimony to a watching world!

The importance of our corporate worship also came up. With two sisters dying unexpectedly, fear can set in, for the other sisters especially. Then with many people, well intentioned, saying, “I just don’t know how you are going to be able to make it through this!”, my wife had a difficult evening after the visitation. As she wrestled with this, words from a hymn we sing came back to her mind:

“From life’s first cry to final breath,
Jesus commands my destiny”

This reminder that her life rests in God’s good and sovereign hands bolstered her and gave her peace. While these other deaths caught us by surprise, God was not surprised. And whatever is to come tomorrow will also be mediated by this God. She knew these truths but being reminded by the words of a song she regularly sings with her church, gave her strength. Oh the value of our corporate worship in helping us to persevere- and the value of songs with substance!