“God, you give true peace to people who depend on you, to those who trust in you.
So (people) trust the Lord always, because in the Lord Yah you have a place of safety forever.” Isaiah 26:3-4
Yesterday Tim and I attended a funeral. We did not know the thirty something year old gentleman who it was in memory of, but our family are friends with the deceased older brother, and his cousin happens to be our Sunday school teacher.
We went not knowing what to expect, because we didn’t know if he was a Christian or not. Praise God that his great uncle spoke with him numerous times about his relationship with Christ, and confirmed that he had “given his life to Christ when he was young and hasn’t taken it back yet”.
Family members spoke. They made us laugh, and they brought tears to our eyes. A slideshow of his fun life was shown, a video clip of him playing with (I believe) his young son was presented, and a voice recording of a practical joke that his younger sister did on him was heard. Even though we entered into the ceremony not ever meeting our friend’s brother, we walked away feeling like we’d known him for a lifetime.
The eldest sister had made a comment something to the effect of “it’s too bad that Isaac never got to see his calling here on earth that God had for him.” But, my friends, I believe his calling was possibly yesterday at the service, and Isaac was looking down smiling.
Why? Well, the brother-in-law, who is a former wild-soul-born-again-and-now-a-preacher (I’d love to hear his testimony!), did just that…preached. He shared about Christ’s love and asked people to turn their lives around and invite Jesus into their heart because having Jesus in your heart is the ONLY way one can get to Heaven. When he boldly asked for those to stand that did that during the service, from what I saw, about five people actually stood up. Praise Jesus! It was at that moment I thought to myself, “THAT was Isaac’s calling…that through his unfortunate and unexpected accident…people he loved came to know Christ and will one day be in Heaven with Him instead of dying an eternal death in Hell.
I know (really…personally I know… Sadness into Joy ) it is hard to come to grips with the fact that a loved one dying young could be a blessing to others. But to know that others have come to know Christ through the loved one’s death brings comfort and peace in the midst of their passing.
It is my prayer that through this season (and always) that this precious family will do as we read in Isaiah and depend on and trust in God to have the peace that can only be found in Christ. That they will take comfort in running to God as their safe place.
Did you need to hear these words today? I hope that you will always seek God, fall more in love with Him, share the Good News, and feel complete peace through our Heavenly Father.
I pray many blessings and much joy for you! Have a wonderful day. – Stephanie