Another "See You Later"

It is not my scheduled day to post, yet I am compelled by a heavy heart and heart of joy to celebrate a special life with a special blog. If you've read my posts for very long, you've met this amazing woman. She is the inspiring friend with cancer who defied the why of suffering with the goal of glorifying God in the how of walking through it with Him (see http://shaunawallace.blogspot.com/2012/01/maybe-shoe-is-hand.html). She is the mother who grieved with hope when her daughter, Katy, unexpectedly died in a car wreck, and in her mourning, her heart's desire was to see lost souls come to know Christ because of Katy's life and death (see http://shaunawallace.blogspot.com/2012/02/untimely-death-timeless-hope.html and http://shaunawallace.blogspot.com/2012/02/unspeakable-sorrow-unspeakable-joy.html).

She is home now. She ran her race well all the way to the finish line. Heaven. She kept the faith, eyes fixed on Jesus the entire time. To the very end. She did not receive her healing in the flesh here on Earth. No, she got something so much better!

Her family grieves, for sure, yet there is peace. Hope. They know where Sherri is. They know they will see her again. And the faith she firmly embraced now lives on in her husband and children who know God is good no matter the circumstances.

There is no end to the ways this family's joy in suffering has blessed and encouraged me. I stand in awe of God's power to comfort and sustain as I witness their love for Him through the most difficult of times. As I kissed her forehead and said "See you later" just days before she passed, the presence of the Lord and His joy filled their home. Sitting peacefully on the other side of the bed answering a continuous flow of posts on FaceBook, her husband, Van, smiled and praised His faithful God while watching his wife's body slowly shut down. It is impossible to capture in human words the supernatural wonder of what I saw that day. What I can articulate is the boost to my faith. The comfort and courage that God CAN carry us through ANYTHING. The resolve to let faith defeat fear. Gratitude that even when we do grieve – and being humans living on an earth where death is certain, we will – we do so with hope when we Jesus is our savior.

Sherri is with Katy. Van will be with her again. My grandfather is with my mother. I will be with them again. For those of us who by grace through faith have been saved, there will be a day when we see Jesus face to face, along with all those who have gone before us. What a glorious day that will be...day one of the rest of eternity!

Faced with death, again, I am compelled to ask, again, do you have that hope? Have you faced the death of a loved one without hope? Hope can be yours today! Eternal assurance. Comfort. Peace. As God gives you grace, respond in faith. Faith in His son. Believe in your heart Jesus is Lord, and confess with your mouth.

“’The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For ‘whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved’” (Romans 10:8-13).

Thus says the word of the Lord.

If you haven’t called on the name of the Lord, you can do it now. And when believers in Jesus prepare to leave this life for eternity, it's no longer "Good-bye." As my Aunt Janice says, it's "See you later."

Sherri, I know you’re no longer here, but the testimony you lived remains in my memories and in my heart where I will cherish your friendship always. Your unwavering faith. Your endless joy. Your warm, infectious smile. I'll see you later!

Van, what a beautiful picture of Christ loving the church as you served and sacrificed for Sherri. As you trusted our Father in heaven with knowing Sherri’s every breath. As you determined, along with your children, to continue to praise our amazing God, no matter what. Your faith spurs me on to greater faith!

Lord, strengthen and renew Van in the days to come. Fill the void Sherri and Katy left with the fullness of Your presence. For all who are grieving the loss of a loved one, whether recent or not, comfort them and give them peace. Only You can.

Shauna Wallace

Holy His

Unspeakable Sorrow. Unspeakable Joy.

Sorrow for the families who lost their daughters lingers. The wonder of it all turns in my head. Memories of my own loss mingle. Crowds pack churches. Their vibrant smiles still light up the room. Laughter and tears lose themselves in one another. Out of the mouths of those for whom the loss is greatest flow words of hope. Rejoicing. Celebration. Comfort. They stand before multitudes, broken hearted and full of joy. I marvel. I start to ask how it’s possible, but I know. I’ve experienced it. The power of God strengthens. The grace of God carries. The love of God fills. The peace of God consumes.  And even in the moments when grief cripples, God is more than able.

I didn’t know Anne. Yet I weep. Ask anyone who knows me. I’m not a crier. I wish I was! There’s such cleansing and release in a good cry. Sitting among loved ones and friends, as the family remembers and shares, then says their final goodbyes, I weep. God’s word whispers. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15).

I knew Katie. Loved her. Prayed with her. Absolutely adore her family. One of hundreds at Katie’s wake, it truly is a celebration. Standing before the coffin that holds their daughter’s body, mom and dad hug, comfort, smile, laugh, and talk about God’s goodness. Now. In the midst of their greatest loss, they can’t say enough about how great their God is.

Hands raised high, voices lifted up, Katie’s funeral is an all-out worship service. No tears. It’s almost as if it would dishonor her desires to cry. She was a worshipper. She is a worshipper, just now it’s in heaven. We simply join her. And God’s word whispers. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”

You see, these families do not grieve as those who have no hope. “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus” (I Thess. 4:13-14). I look up sorrow in the Greek. As expected, it means to grieve. Not expected: “to affect with sadness, cause grief, to throw into sorrow; to make one uneasy, cause him a scruple” (www.blueletterbible.com, I Thess. 4:13, Strong’s G3076, Feb. 15, 2012). These families grieve, but they don’t grieve without hope! As they grieve, hope shines forth. They affect others with joy, not sadness. They cause rejoicing, not grief. They throw others into celebration, not sorrow. They put others at ease, protecting them against hopelessness and despair. In them, we see the hope of eternal life. And the gospel goes forth. In rejoicing and weeping.

I think that’s how we do it. Help them. When the busyness of wakes and funerals eases. When they re-remember every morning when they wake. When going through their belongings leaves them doubled over on the floor. When there’s nothing one can do to take away their pain, what do we do?  “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”

Those days are close. Maybe today. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe you know these families, or you know others reeling from death right now. Or perhaps you’ve been through it yourself. When only the supernatural will do, what practical things can we do in the natural to rejoice with them and weep with them? What does that look like when we have no idea what to do?

If you’ve experienced the comfort of others in loss, please comment below and share the things they did that made a difference in your grief. Let’s be a forum where we spur one another on to good works by teaching and training in areas where we have experience that will benefit others.

To the right below my signature there’s a link that counts the comments for a particular post. Just click that link and it will bring up a comment box.   

A few things I can share from the loss of my mother:

1.       Call. Even if you don’t have any idea what to say, call. Tell them you love them. Ask them what you can do. Know the answer is likely going to be, “Nothing.” And keep calling.

2.       Ask. I love to talk about my mother. It keeps her alive to me. I felt like people were tired of hearing me talk about her. They had moved on with their lives, yet my life didn’t go back to normal. When a friend  would call and ask me questions about my mother, it helped. It healed. It kept her alive.

3.       Pray. Prayers can be felt. Literally. Tangibly. And it makes a defined difference.

4.       Understand. On the days when the pain cripples, be there. Be near. Be available. Hold them. You don’t have to say a thing. Just be there. If there’s something pressing they feel must be done, do it for them. Run interference. Cook. Grocery shop. Clean. Run errands. Take the kids. If it’s a need you can identify and you have the ability to meet it, do it.

5.       Remember. Sorrow flows in waves. It comes crashing when you least expect it. Even when life seems normal again, remember. Cycle back through one through four.

Even though we don’t grieve as those without hope, there are days it’s going to hurt. Debilitate. Let’s be the hands and feet of Jesus. To the ones who have lost, and to those who are watching.

Please comment! Share your experience or a word of comfort for those who mourn.

May the Lord love through us as we become wholly His today.

Shauna Wallace

Holy His
shaunajw@swbell.net