Right now I’m traveling back from attending the funeral of my grandmother. My mom’s mom was a fascinating woman. The wife of a World War II vet, married for 61 years, mother of 5, lover of chocolate. The list is long.
And with every funeral I attend or officiate I am reminded of the stark reality that no matter who you are, what you’ve accomplished, how great your family is, how loved you are - no matter what - unless you die a child of God, you not only die without hope, you have lived, labored, and loved ultimately, in vain.
The verse that resonates in my head as I type this is Psalm 127:1. “Unless the Lord builds the house, it’s builders labor in vain.”. Why? Because it won’t outlast the biggest and baddest of storms: death.
We often think of this truth in the context of some rich dude who does a lot of nice stuff yet doesn’t know Jesus and thus loses it all in the end. That would be the accusing, “law” side of it all.
But I prefer the Gospel side - the good news side. You see, this also means that if you happen to build a modest house, a house of love and family, yes, but also a house of mistakes, struggles, and imperfections, yet build that imperfect house holding on to Jesus then you’re all good. Your house will have all it needs; your house, your life will endure forever.
My grandmother spent her 79 years allowing God to build a beautifully imperfect house. And in the hour of her death we were able to celebrate not just who she was, but who God is and the fact what they built together still stands.
May 31st, 2008 at 10:14 pm
I completely feel you. I sat tonight at my grandmother’s side who has been on hospice now for 8 weeks and on her last breath…and who is the last connection alive I have left within my fmaternal family and the one thing she said was, ” I’m not afraid to die”, “I have Jesus and he has meant everything to me and I just want to be with him”….as tears filled my eyes I had to let her go and prayed with her as she was struggeling to breath knowing that when I left that place it may be the last time I will see her alive. She is Catholic and she said she was hanging on for those last rights from a Priest and it has taken me a month to locate one to come out and read those last rights to her…to no avail…is it possible you could step in and do that for her….if she survives this week? She is hanging on for that. I don’t want to see her suffer anymore. Brenda
June 2nd, 2008 at 8:47 pm
We must also praise God for the legacy of faith that follows a faithful believer. Often it is the Mother who brings her children to church, teaches the faith and models a Christian life. I doubt that she realizes as the Lord builds her house of faith that generations may follow and the foundation is passed down again and again. I wonder just what were my Mother’s prayers for us and for my children. How often did she ponder things in her heart as she lifted them before the throne of God trusting in his providence? I am grateful. Grateful that she brought me to the waters of Baptism, modeled a faith walk and introduced me to His word.
May the house contine to be built. May I grow in my weaknesses and see His handiwork again upon another generation. And may I obtain the same peace and assurance she exhibited as Christ called her into His heavenly home.
June 3rd, 2008 at 9:06 am
I have recently this past year kept a journal of prayers for my children to read once I am long gone with scripture pertaining to just about every situation and circumstance we have come through over the years encouraging them in their walk with God. I did a lineage this morning of my family of the positives and negatives of my maternal and paternal grandparents as an exercise in one of my Beth Moore studies realizing that the faith that has grown and the love for God that has exceeded everything else in my family has greatly been influenced by my great great grandmother all the way down. It also made me realize the generational baggage of other negative things have been greatly influenced through the paternal side, but I was greatly inspired as I realized that my mother, mother’s mother, and her mother’s mother stood firm in the faith even in the most difficult of times and were faithful. It has made me realize all the more how I must continue in my walk of faith for the generations to come in my own family as well as others.
P.s. Matt a Priest finally showed Sunday to give my grandmother her last rights and testiment and now we are just waiting, praying for a peaceful homecoming for her to be with God.