Today at noon my wife’s grandmother Bonnie passed away.
It’s a sad day and of course there is a great deal of mourning that will take place over the next few days and even years. However my daughter really shed some light on the subject of death today.
You see my wife and daughter, along with many members of Christina’s family, have been taking turns staying with her grandmother for the last year or so. They have signed up and taken the mornings, afternoons, evenings and nights. They did this so that her grandmother didn’t have to be alone. So that when she needed help there would always be someone there to help out.
During this time Hailey has seen her great grandmother get sicker and have the ability to do less and less. She has been with Christina and the others through the ups and the downs.
So when the end started to come near for Bonnie, Christina started to explain to Hailey what was going to happen. That grandma was going to go to heaven. She explained that grandma’s body would stay here but her soul would go to heaven. It took a few days for Hailey to wrap her head around all that (she is only five), but yesterday and today she seemed to really understand a bit of what they might mean.
So today when we sat her down and told her what had happened her reaction took me off guard. She was excited.
She wasn’t excited that grandma was gone, but instead that grandma could now do things that she couldn’t do anymore here. Hailey talked about how now grandma “wasn’t old anymore” and how grandma “could run around with her prince” (her “prince” being Christina’s grandpa). She said now grandma could talk to Jesus face to face and not just pray to Him. She could run around “with all her friends she hadn’t seen in a long time and have fun”.
In Matthew chapter 18:1-5 Jesus says :
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them 3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
When Jesus disciples come to Him and start asking questions about status Jesus turns to them and shows them that their view of things is all wrong, He points them towards children. In Jesus’ day as well as ours people try very hard to stop thinking like children and to start thinking like adults. However when Jesus makes a point about how we should view things it points them to the faith of children. He points them toward humility.
Theses verses do not necessarily apply to this situation perfectly. I do however think we can draw truth out of them. That truth is this: When we begin to process things in ways that only our eyes can see we start to miss out on what is really going on.
I think Hailey had it right. She will miss her great grandma but she knew that she should be excited for her. She has no more hurts, no more pains and no more wants. She is with Jesus and that’s the best thing anyone could ask for.
If you have lost someone that you love and they loved Jesus take comfort in the fact that they are now in their Father’s arms. It brings to mind the song “All My Tears” (Video; Chord Sheet) I will leave you with the lyrics below:
When I go don’t cry for me
In my fathers arms I’ll be
The wounds this world left on my soul
Will all be healed and I’ll be whole
Sun and moon will be replaced
With the light of Jesus’ face
And I will not be ashamed
For my savior knows my name
It don’t matter where you bury me
I’ll be home and I’ll be free
It don’t matter where I lay
All my tears be washed away
Gold and silver blind the eye
Temporary riches lie
Come and eat from heaven’s store
Come and drink and thirst no more
So weep not for me my friend
When my time below does end
For my life belongs to him
Who will raise the dead again
Pastor Mike Moore 