Pk’s Corner
September 2015
Matthew 5:4 (NRSV) 4 “Blessed
are those who mourn, for they will be comforted
As I reflect on this past month, I
realize that we had many opportunities to mourn. We have tragically lost friends, neighbors,
fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters.
Many of the deaths were results of long illness, and quite a few were
sudden, and unexpected. It is so hard to
find comfort when a tragedy blindsides you.
Jesus promised that any time we mourn,
we will be comforted, but there is a caveat.
We are comforted when we take refuge in Christ.
You see, death is a part of life. As a friend once told me, we are not getting
out of this alive. Our bodies are finite
creations. The heart has a limited
number of beats that it will beat. Our
lungs will only expand so many times until they will not be able to hold air. Our bodies wear out, that is the way of a
world that has fallen into sin.
That is also not what God intended when
he created. Creation was supposed to be
full of life, not tainted with death, and yet humanity fell and here we
are. Jesus came to stop death. Jesus came to release us from the bonds of
death, by offering us life.
Those who mourn will be comforted. We know, because we have a promise from
Christ, to live with him eternally. This
is not an empty promise, nor the ravings of a mad man. Death has already been denied, when Christ
rose from the grave. We, who believe,
know that Christ reigns eternal, and we are called to live with him for
eternity in heaven. We are comforted
knowing that there is a future, and there is a hope.
Meanwhile, we plod along, trying to
make sense of the loss we feel. We try
to hold it together. We often forget in our
sorrow, that Christ shares this with us.
Christ who knows the feeling death brings, knows the hurt we feel. We are not alone.
For those of you that are hurting, I
beg you to give it to Christ. If you are
not involved in a church, please go. In
that church God provides people who will and can share your grief. God provides comfort, not just in prayer, but
also in presence. Sometimes that
presence is the person sitting next to you in the pew. Be assured, even in your darkest time of
sorrow, God does not and will not abandon you.
Blessed are you, for you will know the comfort that comes through
Christ.
God does not allow sorrow to last
forever. Trust him, he is only a prayer
away.
Amen
