Her eyes
moistened and the slightest line of a tear traveled down a wrinkle on her
cheek. They were tears full of
remembrances that came from a heart tempered with the faithfulness of knowing
her blessed Savior. She was a dear
saintly woman of faith. Her faith was
not a faith of the easy blessings or trivial words. Instead this special lady, who sat in the wheel
chair in front of me, radiated an amazing grace in her life-long reliance on
Christ’s loving redemption of every part and facet of her life. The
redeeming love of her Savior was her living daily reality. Her faith was a faith
of substance and strength. In any given
moment, midst any topic of conversation, a joy seemed to flow from her heart into
the room. It was a sustaining joy that had carried her through both good and
bad times all the days of her life.
As she
told of her life, it seemed as if she had only experienced a lifetime of
hardships. A lifetime of trying to pull a living out of the earth on
the Minnesota prairie and the ever present difficulties of
health issues and the tragic losses of the ones she had loved. Still, there was a
great joy in her words as she spoke of her Savior and Shepherd. In her eyes, in her
words and in her recollections flowed a life long joy in her Savior, lived out in the mysteries of
belief, trust and obedience.
As we
talked about her lifetime, emotion caught in my throat at different times. It happened as she spoke of outliving her honest
son whose heart-felt ethics remained the governing force in his life and in his
business. It happened again as she spoke
of having to say “goodbye” to a baby just born many years ago, who would never
see the colors of a single day. It
happened again as she spoke of her husband, so strong and good, who she missed,
so very much. It happened again as she spoke of her pastors and teachers, who had
encouraged her in her faith along the way. It happened as she spoke of her
struggles to regain some of the physical capacities, she had lost from major and minor strokes damaging her daily abilities and functioning. It did not matter what the subject was or
what had happened to this dear woman. It didn’t matter if
we were talking about yesterday or yesteryear.
Every
thought ended in the same way. She was
always thankful for the Savior who is always the same. He always loved her and he always was there with her. As I sat alone with the woman of no high
position but of remarkable faith; it was easy to sense the presence of the “Joy
of the LORD.” Joy is not a word or a phrase. Joy is not a series of lyrics to a song. It is not an artificial happiness that fades
in heat of the burning difficulties of life.
Joy is deeper. It as deeper than all heartache because it lingers in the
searing pain of disappointment to carry us beyond all events and circumstances. Joy endures and it redeems. Joy anchors us and
joy blossoms from the ashes of suffering because it promises new life in the generous
love our Heavenly Father will always give to us. Joy often comes in blessing but joy comes
again and again when all we have to hold unto are the promises of an abiding Savior and
Shepherd.
I have long forgotten the name of this precious
faithful saint but I will never forget the joy she knew from her Lord that
could not be contained in her heart. Joy
overflowed out of her in every word, every line and every thought. Her great joy
simply was in her Lord. He alone was her lifelong and eternal treasure and He alone was her joy.
"For
the joy of the LORD is my strength" (Nehemiah 8:10)
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