INSPIRASUNS

I’m headed out for the week, spending time with the senior golf group I plan events for. We’re headed to Daufuskie Island, SC, for their Spring meeting. Daufuskie is a wonderful island off Hilton Head. It’s quiet and laid back, and the simple beauty of the low country can’t be matched. Oh, and did I mention that you can get there only by boat, and travel around the island is by golf cart only 🙂 . There are no street lights on the island so at night, as you can probably imagine, it gets dark, like really dark. But, you can make your way around just by the stars and moonlight in the sky. The light rays coming off the Hilton Head lighthouse help a bit too. It will be a fun week with a group of people I have come to love so much.

This morning I’m reflecting on the news of two special people who went to be with Jesus yesterday. The wife of one of our priests passed away early yesterday morning. Her husband by her side and the kids on the phone next to her, they sang one of her favorite songs to her as she stepped into the arms of Jesus. The oldest neighbor in our community, Dr. Carl, passed away last evening at home, in the arms of his wife, and daughter by his side. He was a gentle man with a simple manner, I can only guess how wonderful his bedside manner was as a physician.

As I think about these two people and the wonderful lives they lived and shared with those they love, I can’t help but smile at how wonderous their way into Heaven was. I think about how whole they are again, no physical ailments, no pain or worry, just beauty and light and the warmest feeling of love ever imagined. “Today you will be with me in Paradise”, Jesus told the thief while on the cross.

It’s difficult for those of us left here when a loved one or friend passes away. We’re human and the loss can be overwhelming at times. Father knows our pain, He knows our sadness, however, the gift of His son, and His resurrection were given to us to show, that it’s not the end. This loss is temporary, we will be reunited one day, in paradise.

This morning I share this beautiful song by Casting Crowns, “Scars in Heaven”. It says what we all feel when we lose someone we love so much, and it reminds us that we will be together again.

Let us rejoice in knowing that our loved ones are together with Jesus in Paradise. And…as the last line in this song says, “Until I’m standing with you in the sun, I’ll fight this fight and this race I’ll run until I finally see what you can see”. Let us continue to fight this fight, the fight for Jesus, until we see what our loved ones see.

Have a good day friends.

p.s. Thanks to my stepmom for the beautiful sunset picture from the Panama Canal, the cover of today’s little blog.

Luke 23:43
And He said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”