The older I get the more I have become an emotional
sap. As one goes farther down the road
of life one cannot help being touched by the emotions of life. Life is filled with emotional events; birth,
death, sickness, health, unexpected tragedy, miraculous recovery, gaining new
friends and saying good bye to old friends and loved ones. All of the above seem to have a cumulative effect…at
least they have on me. That may also be
because as a pastor for nearly 40 years I have been with people as they
celebrated the joys of positive emotional events of life and tried to comfort and
console them as they experienced and tried to make sense of the most devastating
times in life.
Other than my faith in Christ, one of the things that helps
keep me grounded is the foundation I received from my youth. I grew up in a small town in Mississippi with
what we call ‘small town Southern manners and virtues’. I open doors for ladies. I still say ‘please & thank you’ & ‘yes
ma'am’ and ‘yes sir’ (even though
at my age I am probably older than the one I am speaking to). I was
also blessed to be born with wonderful parents in a loving home. Oh, I know that things were not perfect. They never are in this sin-scarred world. But it was close, at least in my memories. That is why, although I have been gone from
there for over 40 years and now I live 500 miles away, my heart always has a
special place for my home and my roots.
I recently made a trip home just to reconnect. I have no longer have living relatives in my
home town and had no real reason to make the trip other than nostalgia but at
my time in live that is reason enough. It
was a bittersweet trip. I stopped on the
way to spend time with an aunt in Alabama.
The last time we were together I spoke at my uncle’s and her husband’s funeral. We had a great time sharing laughs and
memories as his uniqueness and memories will be with us for the rest of our
lives. On the way back home I stopped
and visited with an uncle. The last time
I was with him I spoke at my aunt’s and his wife’s funeral. We also shared laughs and memories as her
uniqueness and memories will be with us for the rest of our lives. If it sounds like there is a recurring theme
here, hang on, there is.
My time back in Columbus, MS was also a mixture of
emotions. As I drove around the town
there were many changes. Buildings and
places had changed. Many places from my
youth were gone or in disrepair. But
memories flowed freely as I retraced familiar territory of my younger days. I got to reconnect with friends, some I have
known since 1st grade. We
shared laughs and swapped stories…as best as we could remember. Some of what we remember may have actually
happened. I also had a precious visit
with a friend from my old neighborhood who is heroically battling pancreatic
cancer and discovered an old college roommate is in the battle of his life with
melanoma. I am always reminded how precious, fragile and
fleeting life can be. That is why we
need to make the most of each moment.
I visited our family plot in historic Friendship cemetery. It is not far from the section of Civil War
graves of both Union and Confederate soldiers.
My great grandfather who came here from Prussia, my grandfather, uncles
and aunts and mom and dad are buried there.
My plot is also there. I spent
time cleaning each headstone and placing new flowers. I know they are not there. Mom and Dad have been in Heaven for a while
but I feel closeness as I tend their graves.
I can’t help but get emotional. I
still miss talking, laughing and just enjoying being with them. I have long known that it is important to
cultivate and keep strong positive relationships with family and friends as we
never know what may happen tomorrow and when will be the last time we will see
one another. There’s that recurring
theme.
The relationships we make in this life are the only thing
that is eternal. Everything else decays
and dies. As I stated earlier, each time
I go back to the places of my youth I see the changes and decay or the fact
that some of those places no longer exist.
But the relationships I make are eternal. Time with friends and family I may not get to
see but every few years is always a joy.
We may not have seen each other for some time but immediately it seems
like not a moment has passed as we pick up right where we left off. Remember the importance of making and
maintaining positive growing relationships as they are the only thing from this
life that we carry into eternity. Your
relationship with Jesus determines your eternal destiny. Your friends and family who also trust Jesus
for their eternal destiny will all be reunited forever. Nothing else you may know, say or do in this
life is more important than that realization.
That understanding also taught me that our relationship with
Jesus is the only thing that truly turns the sadness of life around. At one time I thought saying good-bye to
family and friends was difficult for me…especially when it was that final
good-bye. Now I never say ‘good-bye’.
I always say “See you later.” That may not sound like a significant matter
but it finally dawned on me (it took a while but I was never a rapid learner), believers
never really say good-bye because if we never see one another again in this
world we will see each other soon in Heaven where all the sadness, sickness and
sorrow of this world will be gone! That
will be the best reunion and it will never end!
Therefore, make certain you have an eternal relationship with
Jesus. Then share that love and truth
daily as you cultivate and maintain positive relationships each day of your
life. That is all that lasts in this
life and the next. So, I look forward to
the next time we can get together but if for some reason we are not able to see
one another or get together again in this life…”See you later!”
