Song, Laughter, and Tears
My mom usually does not call on Sunday afternoons. Well, she called me last Sunday, the last day of 2006, and informed me that a dear sister in Christ had passed away that morning. Brenda was younger than my own parents and I had worshipped with her and her family ever since I could remember. She had struggled with cancer for the past year until it finally overpowered her physical body.
Although I worshipped with Brenda since childhood I probably could not tell you ten words I remember her saying. Our age difference distanced us. Yet, there are three specific things I will always remember about her that are fitting as we meditate on the lovelier things in life (Philippians 4:8).
I will remember her voice. She loved to sing and she sang out beautifully in worship. She sang alto, her husband sang tenor and as I learned to sing it was their voices that I recall tuning my ear to as we intertwined a spiritual message to the notes of harmony. I will miss her voice echoing across the knots on the wood in the cathedral ceilings of that old church building.
Second, I remember her laugh. It was loud and distinctive. Brenda loved to talk and loved to laugh with people. I remember many nights at the church building waiting around as my parents had long conversations with her and boisterous moments of laughter. Proverbs 15:13 says, “A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance…”
The latter part of that verse says, “...but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.” This is the final thing I specifically recall about Brenda—the tears of her broken spirit. You see, when I was a young teenager, Brenda’s oldest daughter left the Lord and her fellowship was severed. I still remember that day, as Brenda openly cried during services. Her tears were as painful as her laugh was cheerful.
There are no tears in heaven (Rev. 21:4). Yet, it may
do us well to remember the tears shed here. The pain of losing a child’s
soul is far greater than the suffering and struggles of life’s final
hours. Yet, it is not too late to turn a sad departure into a glad
reunion. The resurrected Jesus opens the door to all those who are
willing to enter in (Jn. 14:6). Think about it.
January 2007