Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Mom's Homecoming

On July 5th, 2012 our mom finally ended her battle with dementia and went home to be with the Lord. It was her true desire and focus to be with her Savior and her family in Heaven. The last few days were very difficult, but God gave us some very special moments with Mom that we will treasure always.

We live with the hope and faith of knowing that she is now at complete peace. She is healed and whole. Her brain no longer suffers from the brutal symptoms of the dementia that caused her to slowly slip away from us every day.

Where does this hope come from? My Christian faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus gave up all his deity in Heaven to come here and live out life as a man. Yes, He was God and man, but He suffered all of the trials, temptations, pain, sadness, etc. that we experience in this life. Why? So He could restore our relationship with God and become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Not just the sins we committed in the past, but the sins we will commit in the future. He died for those who haven't even been born yet. It is in that gift of salvation that I place my hope and my future. Mom's life just ended here on earth, but her eternity has just begun and it will never end. So when she slipped away from us here we mourned her passing, but we celebrated her new home in Heaven.

This is our temporary home. Heaven is our permanent home. I love the song by Building 429 that says, "All I know is I'm not home yet. This is not where I belong. Take this world and give me Jesus. This is not where I belong."

Mom was so ready for her permanent home. It's amazing how God starts preparing your spirit to go home. As we watched her in her last moments, she seemed to be at complete peace. She did open her eyes for a short period and we were able to tell her how much we loved her and that we would be fine here. We didn't want her holding on for our sakes. We watched her try to communicate with us by moving her eyebrows up and down. There were lots of tears, but also lots of joy. We felt like we had helped Mom feel like she could let go and run into His arms. That's the way I always pictured her homecoming. She would just take off running free, with no obstacles holding her back. Jesus would be standing there with His arms wide open, waiting to embrace her with a love that only He could give.

We miss Mom more than I can say, but when I worship in church I always picture her worshipping right along with us, free and happy. She was unable to attend church during her last few years. Yet now I feel like she is able to worship with us. That is a powerful vision for me.

I have felt nothing but peace since our mom's passing. That's a peace that only comes from our hope and faith in Jesus Christ. This peace is a gift that we just have to reach out and accept. There are no strings attached. There is nothing you must do to earn it. It's a pure gift. To receive it you just need to say, "Jesus, I ask your forgiveness for my sins, past, present and future. I want to serve you with the rest of my life. Thank you for your gift of salvation. I accept it now. I am a Christian. Christ now lives in me. Amen." It's that simple. You will look the same and maybe even feel the same at first. But the same power that resurrected Christ from the grave will now live inside of you. That's a lot of power. And believe me, to walk out life here on earth, you will need every bit of that power every day.

It's such a simple thing to do in order to receive that same hope and faith that brings peace beyond your own understanding. I pray you accept that gift today. I pray everyone finds this kind of peace and hope. It is possible for everyone to receive this gift. Reach out and grab it while you can.


1 comment:

  1. So glad that AC is finally at peace! How exciting it is to think that one day we shall all worship together. I am sure AC is singing like she has never sung before! I wonder if I will sing on key when I get there! I am sure I finally will! Thanks for writing... It is encouraging to all who read!

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