We slid in quietly. Sat in the back, my husband and I.
The somber, familiar feeling overwhelmed as we gathered to bid farewell to a friend.
A husband, a father, a son, a brother. A friend to hundreds… thousands… as was evident in the gathering.
The ceremony a comforting ritual… heartfelt words… godly wisdom.
I couldn’t stop thinking of his family.
A beautiful wife, two sons on the edge of childhood… entering manhood, a little girl… the same age as my young daughter.
His parents, his siblings, his friends… his brothers-in-arms… a collective body ~ praying. Prayers of thanksgiving for the man he was… thanksgiving for the servant he was… thanksgiving for the love he shared with so many.
A warrior, like my own… a fighter pilot, like my own, sharing the bond of sacrifice.
The rows of people, dark-clad, muffled tears.
Then the sobs of a child
a little girl
wanting her daddy back… here
The priest spoke of love. He spoke of Christ’s love. He spoke of our friend’s devotion to his Lord.
Do you know what was most on his mind before he passed into the arms of His savior? A question.
He knew God would watch over his family, he knew they would be reunited in the paradise we await. He knew it was all just a matter of time.
His thought ~ the question he asked the godly counselor…
Have I served God well?
It was the question he repeated in the week before his passing.
The priest spoke of Romans 6… he asked us to read it in honor of our friend.
I did.
Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ
I poured over the words… drinking them in with the hope that they would finally and completely take hold.
The life I live, I live to God
The question is one that is swelling in my mind… squeezing thoughts of self out of the way. I want the question to take hold… I want the question to be the first question in the gift of a new morning… a new sunrise with my six pack… I want the question to be the last thought my conscious mind holds… trusting Him to take care of all of it ~ of all of us.
Have I served God well?
Am I serving God well?
Will I serve God well?
That we would all embrace this thought… do we serve God well?
Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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