Today marks one year since my mother-in-law died – hard to believe…  She was a wonderful lady whom I loved, and I miss her.  There are surely others of you out there who are observing a similar anniversary – my heart goes out to you.

This week, all across our great country, young people are going back to school, but I like to think of ‘em as going forward to school!  For example, there are many young men and women who are leaving home for the first time and traveling across the country to a school and brand new, huge, important chapter in their lives.  Please join me in lifting them in prayer as they try and mesh with a pot-luck roommate, perhaps sharing a room for the first time, shraing a bathroom with strangers from all walks of life, etc.  While excited, remember that many grieve having to actually leave the comforts of home and the security of parents.  And parents… I know while you take a couple of deep breaths of relief from the day-to-day grind, you grieve, missing your child.  Perhaps you fear for their future, etc.  Please folks, let’s lift one another during this transitional time – we all need each other, and certainly we need the strength, guidance, and comfort of our Lord, Jesus Christ!

Ooh, how do you deal with the unknown – it can be so scary!  Why is it that we typically fear the unknown?  Heaven is unknown, and yet we, Christians, don’t seem to fear Heaven – we look forward to it!  We do seem to fear death, but not Heaven.  Perhaps it’s because we are of Heaven.  We’re not living, or even dying, human beings – we’re living spiritual beings dying to get home to Heaven!!!  It’s the journey that’s unknown, and that can be scary.  But the Lord says ‘Fear not, for I am with you always’.  I wonder if the best way to deal with the unknown is not to, but rather to simply deal with the known (here & now), leaving the unknown (future) to our Heavenly Father…  Sounds good to me!  (I just wish that was easy to do, huh?!?!)

I know it’s been two weeks since I’ve blogged, and I’ll try not to wait that long again, but I find it’s so easy to just pick up where I left off.  Our loving relationships are like that – when we are (someday) reunited in Heaven, we’ll just pick up where we left off!  The only difference is… we won’t go back to the way we were (isn’t that a song?) - instead, we’ll go forward (together, hand in hand) to the way it is meant to be – loving… perfect love - like we’ve never known before.  I know it’s hard not to look back – believe me… I know, but it’s so much better (healthier) to look forward - I guess we might as well, huh?!?!