What Stood Out

In the Sunday evening memorial service for the two teenagers who died in a fire and in the Monday afternoon funeral service for a man in his 70's several things stood out to me.

For the two young people:
The suddenness of the loss is still shocking to all of us.
The outpouring of concern, the generous spirit of the community, and the love shown by so many people.
The fact that words seem to fail us at times like these.
The fatigue on the faces of the families. (Pray for rest.)
The joy with which these two young people had lived their lives.
The need to express love and gratitude to people regularly.
The incredible privilege it was to share in this service.
That pictures are powerful.
That I can't imagine life without one of my children or grandchildren.
That God is still God.


For the 73 year old man:
There is no good way to lose someone you love.
We are rarely ready to lose someone.
We need to embrace family while we can.
That 54 years of marriage is a great thing.
That it is hard for a spouse to say good bye after 54 years.
That I can't imagine life without my wife.
That God is still God.


Please continue to pray for these families, for the friends of those who died and for the rest of us to be wise in our ministry to all who are impacted by these losses.