First Church Of Wal-Mart

Psalms 116:15
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

Wal-Mart yesterday....
Roaming up one isle and down another waiting on a phone call from wife to give me the list of things she needed me to pickup.
Check out the movies....
See what kind of sweat shirts they had.
Up and down the toy isle.....Christmas is just around the corner.
Then my eyes caught sight of someone.
Hadn't seen him in a number of years.
I made my way toward him.
He saw me.
We hugged, slapping each others back as men do.
There were the customary "How are you doing?"
And a few "You look great" thrown in for good measure.
Then there in the isle's of Wal-Mart, the church came together.
Oh, the attendance was only two, but isn't there a verse in Scripture that says wherever two are more are gathered? Yes there is.

He told me that this was the anniversary of the death of his wife. Been four years since she died. As those words rolled around in my brain, I was flooded with images of her. You see, she and I went to school together from the first grade on. She was what some would call a "Gentle Soul".  Smart as a whip, and you knew she would do well in life. Played piano at church and loved Jesus. "Has it really been four years since she died?" I asked. "Yes, and it seems like forty," my friend answered. But then what took place next was what made my day.

Without any show or bravado, my friend spoke openly and honestly about how he has dealt with her death. Hard? Yes. Day's he wants to pull the covers over his head and not go anywhere or do anything? Yes. But He gets up and out every day. He has a deep abiding hope and faith that he will be reunited with her at some point. There were no regrets in his voice or his story as he shared about her last days. She was more concerned about him that her on plight. He assured her that life would be hard without her, but he would carry on and be o.k. 

You know, forty years of marriage forges some pretty strong bonds and beliefs.
I'm talking about a good marriage. One that has a foundation. One where the two truly are one bound in Christ. That was what these two people had. A marriage to each other....a commitment to each other that was bound by God's Holy Spirit. And it was very evident in the things my friend shared with me. My friend told me, "I tried to honor our marriage vows all the way to the end. Not because I had to, but because I just loved her so much." There were no tears as he shared his story because he has embraced the grief and seen it through. Does he miss her? Sure he does. But there in the middle of whatever pain may come.....there in the middle of the memories that come washing over him like the tide.....is the promise..the hope and the assurance that he will see and be with here again. Such is the evidence of a life that has been lived for Christ. One that in the midst of hardship and pain is filled with hope.

We probably talked for 45 minutes. 
More hugs and handshakes, and prayer.
Then we said our "good-bye's" and parted company.
I knew that this had been an appointment that was meant to happen.
A time when two people come together, even if for the briefest of time, to encourage one another.
God....
He is something else, isn't He?

God on you....
mb