You know… sometimes we go to God with questions, but we get no answers.  Instead we just get love.  And grace.  And we find that they’re always more than sufficient!

The two greatest motivators are fear and love.  I believe fear generates quicker action, but only for so long.  I believe love generates appropriate action over the long haul.  Love is greater – it can even be infinite whereas fear cannot.  (For example, I love my wife infinitely.)  Love is more powerful, and God’s love – the love of God – is definitely more powerful than that of us humans.  The bottom line; God’s love for us is the most powerful force in our lives.  I feel sorry for those who never experience it, and I rejoice with those who do – I hope you’re one of ‘em!  If not, I hope you’ll be open to the great love of God!  It’s far better than any other feeling you could possibly experience here on Earth.  Just think about all the things we (humans) love – the ‘quick fixes’ we seek and often rely on – money, sex, fame, alcohol, power, you name it… instead, just let God love you…

Two weeks ago today, I went to church out of town – a friend, Joe White, was ‘preaching’ (though he doesn’t call it that), and afterwards, we had lunch together.  We had a good ‘heart to heart’ talk, which we both needed.  He has had cancer, but is in total remission, thank God!  Anyway, Joe asked me a question about my wife’s death (two years ago); he asked me if there was any despair at the end.  I told him there wasn’t – it was a beautiful (better than ’storybook’) ending!  It was an awesome time, especially in Yvonne’s life, but mine too, because you see… part of me went with her, and that part of me rejoices!  I’ve personally witnessed the death of two people, my wife & her dad who died fifteen years earlier.  With each of them, it wasn’t a matter of life one moment and death the next… no, it was a phase of ‘in & out’, and it was a beautiful sight to behold.  I’ll give you an anology; think of it like this… the gates of Heaven are opening slowly, widely… and before going in, we get a glimpse, a peak, she steps inside, then turns around to smile at me one more time, she turns towards Heaven, then back at me and winks, then on into Heaven – this all takes a day or two, so it really was like a phase from this life to the next.  And during that time, you clearly see that it’s not death staring us in the face – it’s perfect life enveloping us, begging us forward.  By comforting her, It’s like I helped to open the gates for her much like I would open the door for her to enter before I – I help to ease her path with love and dignity, with awe for who she is, and who she is becoming… an angel!  I not only loved her to death… I love her infinitely!

If you are in the valley of the shadow of death, don’t despair… look forward to His light, and let it shine through you!

More powerful than grief – even deep grief – is God’s very loving power within our heart, by invitation, to overcome – to survive – to survive well, and to THRIVE…