Terry is doing better, although is still not his old self. Maybe never will be. He is nearly 81, after all.
My cold has retreated back to whatever hell colds inhabit.
So life goes on.
A new baby has been born into our church family. A fine older gentleman went to heaven a couple of months ago, and his dear wife is bravely continuing to bless everyone around her.
An old friend who is still in his sixties has developed tumors in his brain. His future right now is radiation. His wife has battled her own cancer, some years ago, and is no stranger to the process.
Young people are graduating from college–students I had in my homeschool co-op, and four of them will be donning cap and gown soon. There is a great deal of talent in this group: Science, writing, music, math. They’ve made their parents proud, and me too!
Older folks are graduating to the position of elders and counselors, a source of encouragement to the younger set.
This is the natural course of life. I remember, when I was very young, thinking of death as a thing to be feared and dreaded above all things. It was strange to me, not having come into close contact with it. I remember thinking about dying sometimes as I lay in bed waiting for sleep to come.
I don’t think about it much these days. I don’t fear it. I used to say that the only thing I feared about death was the possibility of great pain. I don’t fear that so much any more, either. I’ve had my share of pain already, and it’s going to grow worse as time goes on. I’ve learned to accept it and accommodate it as much as possible. Pain will not have the final victory!
If I didn’t know the Lord, I wonder if I would feel differently about pain, sickness, and death. Maybe, because the fear of the unknown is strong in us.
I refuse to live my life in fear. I don’t like what I see developing in the world, in my country. But I will not fear, because Jesus is always with me. He has promised never to leave or forsake me. Even in dying and in death, He will not forsake me.
I’m really not trying to be morbid here. It’s just that I’ve lived long enough to understand that death is a part of life. Knowing the Lord takes the worry out of death and dying.
And I do SO look forward to heaven!
Linda's Bible Study 