It's a busy weekend around here. Still with all the busyness, I've found time to relax that is unlike most weekends. With Monday being a holiday, I got my cleaning job done on Saturday. Right after I finished cleaning, Ran and I intended to go to town for a few minor supplies and lunch. We were on the way when I got a call to go estimate for a few new cleaning jobs. That held up us a bit from our excursion, but I got that done and then we were off to Sturgis!
Lunch was late and we were both really hungry by the time we got to town. After eating we went to the store and I got three cards of buttons for the cuffs on the 70's dress. I spent much of the evening finishing the dress. I really like the outcome! I was able to wear it to church this morning with a necklace my mom had gotten me a while ago. The neckalce matched perfectly. People gave me many nice compliments. At first, Clint thought the dress might be a bit formal for church, but I assured him that people understand that I'm a little "different" with my styles and they are gracious to me on that! It's true, it looked like an old 70's prom dress. One lady commented to me, 'I love your dress! I'd wear that style if I could!'
What's blooming around here? Pretty much everything! Wow, is the garden enjoyable right now! One lonely little pale pink rose in our yard and no others, but most every iris in every color is out with coral bells, sweet william, and so much more, even a dark purple clematis. Loving the look of it all!
We had a sudden, unexpected death happen yesterday. A distant cousin of Clint's and member of our church had a heart attack and died very suddenly. Clint was working on his sermon with the scanner on in his office when he heard the rescue squad called to an address that sounded vaguely familiar. He grabbed the phone book and looked it up and sure enough, it was this gentleman from our church. Clint called the family and was told what was happening and he headed straight for the house. This was a shock and certaily not what we expected to start the Memorial Day weekend. So this week our church family will be involved in helping with another funeral. This gentleman and the man whose funeral we hosted last week, were cousins. How unusual for this to occur.
When a death happens suddenly, it always reminds me that we all need to be ready. Most of us have no idea how many days we have on this earth. It's so vital to be ready to meet the Lord, for we truly don't know when such a thing can happen. Salvation is a free gift and we are wise to take advantage of it, not putting it off for some time in the future. Hebrews 9:27 says "And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment."
In our years of ministry Clint and I have been part of serving at an unusual amount of funerals. Of course, it's mostly Clint since he does the preaching and meeting with the family, etc., but I have witnessed a few things at the bedsides of dying people as well. Clint even works for a nearby funeral home part time, serving as an usher. He really sees alot of different customs, situations and so on. I remember one experience when we were called to the bedside of a terminally ill person. We met with her and the family to pray. She was saved and looked forward to meeting Jesus. Some of the family were resisting God's call to them at the time. It was so sad to see someone reject God's offer of salvation with excuses like, 'I'm not good enough.' No matter how much explaining we did, they didn't seem to understand that that's exactly why we need Jesus! We're not good enough--but He is!
I've also seen people refuse to answer the pointed question, "Have you ever accepted Jesus as your saviour?" I have literally watched a person avoid this question on their deathbed while God held the keys to eternity in heaven with Him right before them. Very sad indeed.
Thankfully this gentleman that passed away yesterday was ready to meet Jesus as well as the person whose funeral we had last week and so many more we have known. If you know someone who needs to understand the saving grace of the Lord, don't hesitate to pray for them and take every opportunity to tell them the good news of Jesus each time when the Lord leads. We truly don't know how suddenly death can come causing a person to step into the next realm of eternity.
Memorial Day is a time to remember those who have gone on before us. It's especially obvious to me this year in light of the recent deaths we've experienced in our church family. I hope you will have good memories of loved ones as you celebrate this holiday. But most of all, I hope you will be sure you are ready to meet the Lord and that those you love have heard the Gospel.
Blessings, LORI
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