Jewells of Thought

Wow the only place to start is the beginning. A week ago. Last Friday morning I left home with my parents fairly early to go to an appointment up at Terre Haute. Mom was getting some results from her stress test back from the week of Thanksgiving. It had been scheduled since the week before the holiday.

We were in the car and my phone was in the drink holder I believe. I heard it before I looked. My mind was thinking that it was my niece remembering we were heading to Terrible-Haute as she calls it. Yet she had wanted to go with us. So when my message music came on she was the first person I thought it could be and so I let it go for a little bit. Not very long though I can’t avoid her for too long.

However, when I did look the text was from Brenda… and it took my breath away because I couldn’t grasp the words. Her text was plain and simple a member of our church had unexpectedly died the day before the first day of the new year. As I posted on recently another gentleman and Preacher who attended the church had died the night of our Cantata we were waiting for that announcement, to know he was finally with his Lord and Savior, this though was such a shock to my system. I had to blink and stare at this message for so long it seemed like 20 minutes had passed by before I could announce to my parents in the front seat what I was struggling to grasp.

I kept saying it was 20 minutes of absolute shock, maybe more like 10 minutes though. We had just gotten to the highway going to Sullivan and we were nearly at Sullivan by the time I was able to function again enough to read the message to them. My head kept repeating the past Saturday night when I last talked to him after the performance, the last time I saw him alive.

My goodness my family has known his name and his friend for years, but until I started going to Grandma’s Church a couple of years ago I didn’t know much about them. They were so sweet to Grandma making sure she got to church they were such a Godsend for our family and to Grandma herself allowing her the autonomy to still go to her church has helped her so much as she moved from her house into this apartment.

Last Sunday was a bit downcast, but just as Rev Kenny we know where he is and that’s the important thing. Mourning though is the hard part as many of us know and our dear friend, his partner in crime will miss him in so many ways. Everyone gave her a hug and I couldn’t let her leave Sunday without giving her one either. Talk about not a dry eye in the place that morning, I have experienced that before after a loved one’s death and the anniversary is coming fast once again. I will never forget how the heartache was felt in the church that day, not since another death have I felt such intense mourning like 1999.

Then tonight was the viewing. Wow what a difference a week makes. Some time to heal and mourn and we see the truth that Heaven has gained two joyful men. My parents and I again went to pay our respects and meet some of his family and also see not only my fellow church members and Preacher, but my parents as well. This is not the first time I have been mesmerized by the way God works between churches. The three of us were having conversations with friends and friends who are like family to us. We got to have a moment to reveal that my Preacher is a cousin, my parents Preacher did not know this and some others had an idea but were still a bit surprised. God is good when He can use a Christian man’s viewing as a time for friends and family to catch up and learn some things and celebrate a man’s decision to live in eternity with his Lord and Savior.