My husband and I are very involved with our church. We are also very involved with our Sunday School class. The relationships we build in our class are the life-blood to our worship experience. Sharing triumphs and trials with our friends is both grounding and rewarding. Our class is our church family. When one hurts we all hurt. So when our friend’s mother passed away this week, we went to the funeral.
Funerals are not my favorite place to go. It reminds me of heartache from years past. But it’s not about me, it’s about our friends, and every time I don’t “feel” like doing something, it’s a pretty good indicator that’s exactly what I need to do. So my husband and I went.
I am so glad we did. The message was great. I got a glimpse of this woman of 96 … inspiring, spirited, full of life and faith. She and I would have been kindred spirits.
I walked away from the funeral refreshed and happy, reminded that the Good Shepherd cares for His flock, never leading us to running waters that frighten, but leading us beside still waters that are calming. That Good Shepherd leaves the 99 looking for the one stray sheep. I’ve been that “one” gone astray, and I’m a lot happier being next to the Shepherd. I hope you feel the same.
Tagged: friendship, grief and loss
