Today, I attended the funeral of a godly man. He was a WWII veteran, a husband of 63 years and a father of four. I haven’t had much time to spend with him and his sweet wife, as he’s been sick most of the time we’ve been at Bethany, but every time I saw him, he always had a smile on his face and a kind comment to offer.
Mr. Warren had leukemia, and he and Gunter shared the same oncologist. As we celebrated his life today and wept for the broken hearts of the family he left behind, I couldn’t help but think about all the amazing things that must’ve happened during his life, all the experiences, all he learned.
I also couldn’t help but watch his wife’s face. How do you cope when you’re suddenly without your spouse of 63 years? I can’t imagine that, and I’ve only been married for two and a half.
Life is temporary, and I know God calls us to live so much deeper than we do. He wants us to die to ourselves every day, to put away selfishness and to live His great adventure, His life of sacrifice. He wants us to cherish people more and see meaningless pursuits for what they are.
A few weeks ago, The Preacher’s Wife posted a survey for ministers’ wives about how they show love and feel loved by their congregations, and vice versa for laypeople. I approached the survey from the mindset of how our churches have shown love to us, but as I read the other comments, I began to remember that I’m not here to be loved or to be concerned when I don’t think I’m being accepted. I’m here to love others! I read comments about how ministers’ wives showed genuine concern by listening, spending time with people and making a conscious effort to reach out. It liberated my thinking and drove me to seek God about how I can fulfill my call to love – to focus on others’ needs instead of my own.
After 20 years of being a Christian, I’m still pretty clueless, but I figure that every day God leaves us here, we have a purpose. And it seems like as soon as I’m getting the hang of fulfilling my purpose, it changes. I guess that’s why we have to take up our crosses daily and follow Him step by step. It’s a good thing He’s patient.
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2 comments:
What a great post! You are so right. We are to love others and the only way we can do it right is to ask God to fill us with His love (Agape - loving in the best interest of the other person). Otherwise, using our love, we really don't have much to give and our loving them may not be in their best interest, but ours.
The theme of the entire Bible is relationships -- with God and each other. Maybe someday it will sink in ..... and stay :)
Blessings!
Great blog! You are not as clueless as you think. I agree that the heart of the matter is the matter of the heart. Jesus is life and life consists of giving yourself away. Love is the currency that completes this transaction so...spread the wealth around!
Love ya,
Daddy
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