A Lesson in Comfort. From the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:4  “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” 

My mother died on a Sunday.  She died in church while Dad was reading the Scripture lesson.  I was in the choir on the platform following along in the pew Bible when Dad stopped talking.  At first, I looked up, startled that he had stopped, concerned that something was wrong with him.  Then I saw what had interrupted my father’s reading.  One of the ushers was carefully carrying my mother out of the church, across the street, and into the parsonage.  A heart attack had quietly ended her life. My mother was a positive person, kind, thoughtful, full of laughter, and a true servant for Christ.  I loved her dearly.   Her death was my first experience of losing a loved one.  I felt the loss deeply.  Therefore it was a relief when the relatives began arriving.  Visitation at the funeral home brought hundreds of people, giving hugs, sharing stories, paying their respects to a woman they held in high esteem.  I was comforted by this outpouring of love and it confirmed what I already knew – that my mother was someone very special. After the memorial service, when only relatives remained, we gathered at the house where we enjoyed a meal together and shared more stories.  I was so happy that my Aunts and Uncles were there.  Just their presence was a comfort to me. I cannot remember a single word anyone spoke to me, by I do remember that the comfort came when the people came. 

Prayer:Thank you God for the words of Jesus that indeed give us comfort and bless us in our joys and sorrows.  Help us to understand the power of love, that we may not only receive love, but be ambassadors of love in our thinking, speaking, and giving.  Thank you for family and friends and for the comfort community brings.  Amen.