As the Wind Blows

Psalm 103 (partial)

"As the heavens tower over the earth,
so God's love towers over the faithful.
As far as the east is from the west,
so far have our sins been removed from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the has compassion on the faithful.
For he knows how we are formed,
remembers that we are dust.
Our days are like grass;
like flowers of the field we blossom.
The wind sweeps over us and we are gone;
our place knows us no more.
But the Lord's kindness is forever,
toward the faithful from age to age.
He favors the children's children of those
who keep his covenant,
who take care to fulfill its precepts."

If we were all able to have it our way, we would never have to say good-bye to eachother.  Eternal life could be fulfilled right here, with our family, friends and all of the comforts we have come to appreciate in this world.  However, that is not God's design.  We are here among eachother for only a brief moment compared to the eternity that waits for us in Heaven.  When we lose someone from our lives it is difficult to understand that they have, in some way, fulfilled God's plan for them on earth and He is now calling them home.  But we must understand and we must rejoice.  Sometimes the person we lose is a Grandparent who has provided us love and support or friend or family member who has died much too young.  Their time with us was part of a larger plan.  It is up to us to decipher how God had them act for him in our lives and how He had them touch us in some way.  We learn in life and we learn from death.  We should find comfort in knowing that our loved ones find peace and eternal love in the arms of their Father when they leave this world.

Today, I am reflecting that I love and I miss those that I have lost in my life.  I also realize that although those losses have caused pain, they have helped me to grow in my understanding of my own relationship with God and my own mortality.  I know that life can get to be a frenzy, but I pray that we all are able to take a moment with the people we meet and converse with everyday and let them know that they are special in some way.  Sometimes a pat on the back or a smile is all it takes.  Hold your spouse for a moment longer and read your child the extra page.  For those simple gestures might help someone to have a brighter blossom in the field.  We are only passing through.  The wind will eventually blow that takes each of us away to our eternal resting place and we will be greeted lovingly by those we so dearly miss.

Bike:
Road another 20 miles tonight.  The wife and I are already scheming to make sure I have time to get a road ride in this weekend.  It will work out for sure.