On Birthdays and Easter
Last night, I cried my eyes out.
A young mom passed away, after her three year long bout with cancer. I doubly cried when I found out that she left this earth on the day of her eldest daughter’s, 18th birthday. She had three young girls.
Sad things happen to good people . . . and we are left with question marks in our thought bubbles. Why???
At the memorial service, all three of her sweet young daughters spoke. Laughter mingling with tears, aching pauses, at the memories and beautiful photos of their mom and family times together.
Then her husband spoke. The man who loved her, who aside from his work, became her constant partner, confidant, cheerleader, chef, driver, injection-giver, stress reliever . . .
He shared how, on his first night alone, he opened his wife’s Ipad and found instructions and a password. His sweet wife had left letters. Lots of letters for him and for each of the three girls to read at different stages.
She had also left her favorite quotes and songs to be sung. All worship songs for her wake and funeral.
He talked about the vows they had shared as husband and wife on their wedding day.
“. . . Knowing that it is God’s will for me to marry you, I make a commitment to you today, to love you with an everlasting love . . . to live with you in an understanding way . . . ” He talked about the joy of having her as his wife.
Then he did something very brave and inspiring.
In the midst of his tears, he addressed each daughter, one by one, and spoke words of blessing over each one.
He also told the eldest, never to think of her birthdate with sadness as a date marred by the death of her mother. Instead, to regard that day as a very special day. A day of two combined celebrations, two birthdays. Her birthday on earth and her mom’s birthday in heaven. Two reasons to celebrate.
He then proceeded to give each daughter a ring. I was wondering why.
Then he spoke.
Just as he and his wife had committed through these same rings to love each other unconditionally, many, many years ago on their wedding day, he began to speak these words of affirmation now to his daughters.
“. . . I make a commitment to you, our daughters . . . To love you with an eternal love . . . to live with you in an understanding way. Never leaving you or forsaking you . . .” He then gave his daughters, their rings as a sign of his unconditional fatherly love for them. (Two were the wedding rings he and his wife had worn, one was the ring his wife also wore which came from his parents.)
By this time all the Kleenex in my bag, all the Kleenex in the room, perhaps, all the Kleenex in the universe was gone, after he finished speaking.
Needless to say, I was in a reflective mood when I arrived home that night.
I was supposed to write a blog on Easter for Joey’s website, but all I could think of was that scene. How the father, in the midst of his own pain, grief and mourning at his own loss, chose to bless the children that he loved.
And I thought of our Heavenly Father and of Jesus, who at the expense of his own trials, extreme pain and cruel death, chose to pay the price we couldn’t pay, to win a prize we couldn’t win.
And how Easter, to me, is somehow, another birthday of Jesus.
Christmas, we celebrate his birth on earth, as a man.
Easter, we celebrate his freedom from his earthly body and his life reunited with his father in heaven.
Most of all, we celebrate HIS WIN. He punched death in the face and rendered it powerless. He rendered sin toothless in its efforts to bite us and hold us captive in its grip. And all I could say was thank you.
Thank you Jesus, for your “heaven birthday” and thank you for my friend’s.
We think so much of this life on earth, when we really should think of where we are spending our “other” birthday.
Do you know where you’re spending your “eternity” birthday?
“ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26
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