In Memory...

Philippians 3:20

"But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies, so that they will be like His glorious body."

I write this post for the glory of God and in loving memory of my husband's brother, who went to be with Jesus on May 27, 2008. What a year it has been, and as I look back and reflect, I am touched all over again by God's amazing grace!

Last May, the Sunday night before Memorial Day, my brother in law "BIL" was in an ATV accident. His body was completely broken. We were warned before we saw him, of his brokenness. It was bad! At some point, the next day, one of the ICU nurses, believed that we didn't have a grip on the gravity of his condition, so she took ,what looked like a long piece of receipt paper, and listed his injuries. Eventually, in the hours to come, we began to see that it was more a matter of when, than if he would die. As a family, we agreed to take turns sleeping, showering, etc...

Never before have I seen a person leave their earthly body, and to this day, it still takes my breath away. My husband and his sister and I were called from the waiting room late in the night, as it was about to "happen". BIL's body was beginning to fail. I stood on one side of the bed with a hand on his head, the other on his chest. My husband was calling the family, and his sister held BIL's hands. She and I knew many moments of panic as we felt him leaving, and our own powerlessness to stop him. I remember whispering to him to please just wait, for just a little longer. I begged God to touch my heart, to calm it and to give me a song that would soothe my anxiousness. My father, did just that. The song He sang to my heart: "My Redeemer". Over and over, He spoke the words, "My redeemer is faithful, and true. Everything He has said, He will do, every morning His mercies are new. My redeemer is faithful and true." And then He drew this picture on my heart. I'll try to describe it for you.

Remember the scene in the movie Forrest Gump? Jenny was yelling for Forrest to run and he tried, with his crippled, braced legs, to run. And indeed he did! He ran until the braces broke and fell to the ground. He ran from danger, he ran from infirmity, he ran from rejection and from all that held him back. But what was he running to? BIL's heart raced under my hand and God showed me that, like Forrest, he was running. And while I begged him to stay in his broken body, he continued to run. I don't believe he ever even heard me calling him back. He had seen Jesus. He heard Jesus, say to "come."

Redeemer- one who buys back, repurchases; rescues with a ransom

Isaiah 43:1

But now, this is what the Lord says- He who created you, O, Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine."

BIL heard Jesus call him by his name and he ran. He ran right out of his lowly, broken body and he has been made like Christ. He is at home in heaven. All of us will leave our lowly bodies at some point. It is a medical and biblical certainty. The question is, will you hear your Heavenly Father say, "come"? You can.

John 3:16-17 says

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only son, that whoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him."

All of us, everyone in this world sins. Our sins make us slaves to death. Jesus is our ransom. He was perfect and He died for us. Do you believe that you sin? Do you believe that you deserve hell because of your sin? Do you believe that Jesus died for you? Do you believe that His death on the cross was and is enough to pay your ransom? Are you redeemed? I love you, my friends! I pray that the truth of God's love will touch your heart today.