Autumn is my favorite season. I love the beautiful colors, especially when it’s accompanied by Indian summer. Last week my husband and I trekked down to our little place at the Lake to winterize our cabin for the season. We have probably about a dozen ancient huge white oak trees in our yard and the leaves were dropping like rain! They were already ankle deep! Although it was too chilly to have coffee on the deck in the mornings, we sat in the living room and watched the lake and the colors turning on the hills in the distance. Geese, woodpeckers and eagles were some of our favorite birds that kept us enthralled as we talked and watched the silent turning of another year. That place is full of memories of Isaac and all the grandchildren. Their sweet voices are in our heads and memories pop up without effort. They are all bittersweet. Sweet because the last ten years prior to Isaac’s death were the best of our lives. Bitter because they are all suddenly gone. Isaac’s presence wasn’t the only thing we lost. In the meantime the other grandchildren grew up while we weren’t paying attention. Fourteen months ago today Isaac left us and we are all permanently altered. It’s strange that Autumn would be a favorite season. It is, after all, the brilliant end to life that is followed by the cold and dead of Winter. How I hate winter! I vowed several years ago that I wouldn’t complain anymore about winter and strive to enjoy every day as a gift from the Lord. But there you have it – the truth remains – I hate winter! But oh the joy that follows in the Spring! The re-coloring of nature with brilliant greens and bright flowers! The one hope I hang on to during the bleak winter is the hope of spring! And so it is with Death. Death is as cold and hopeless as winter seems. It feels endless. But it isn’t. Spring will arrive, and with it the resurrection of life! If you have lost a precious loved one, you may be stuck in your own seemingly dead winter. But make no mistake: life and resurrection are coming! Your loved one is not dead if he is with the Lord. We have that Blessed Hope! And when God signals the blowing of the Last Trumpet, everyone both dead and alive who is a follower of Christ will be transported to life eternal on a new and perfect Earth with Jesus as our great ruler, the King of Kings! “We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So comfort each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 God bless you all Dear Readers, Katherine Swanson One of Isaac’s favorite things in all the world was fishing and he often enjoyed fishing at Rapp Park. Isaac’s grandfather and I recently purchased a memorial bench dedicated to Isaac and had it placed at the park. For those of you who go there, please take time to sit on his bench, enjoy the view, and appreciate God’s beauty there. We wouldn’t even mind a bit if you said a little prayer while you’re there!
Posted on: Thu, 13 Nov 2014 14:21:14 +0000
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