Saturday, March 4, 2017

Have Faith & Remember His Love

My grandpa passed away this week.  He had been sick for many years with Alzheimer's.  I hadn't seen him in a very long time.  He was the best grandpa.  I have enjoyed spending time reliving old memories.

I was thinking of him when I came across a Documented Faith devotion on 2 Corinthians 4:18.

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
As soon as I saw the little prayer printable, I knew I wanted to add it to my bible.  And the idea for the page just flowed from there.  As I sat at the table, staring at the little prayer printable, I thought about Grandpa and how unfair it was that such a terrible disease overtook him.  What would the last years of his life had been like if he hadn't been sick?  How many more years would he have had to enjoy his grandchildren and great-grandchildren? And I thought about the toll this disease has taken on my grandma. She went to the nursing home every day to feed him lunch.  All of the heartache she must have felt over these years, watching her husband fade away.



As I sat there, I realized that we may never know why Grandpa had Alzheimer's and it may never make sense to us on this side of Heaven.  BUT! That's ok.  We don't have to understand.  We just have to believe that God is a good, good God. He loves us so very much and he can use even this for His good. I also know that Grandpa is rejoicing in Heaven right now.  He is with Jesus and his baby girl.  He is in no pain. He has fully recovered his mind. He is at peace. 


Last night as I painted and stamped and prayed, the words to journal just would not come to me.  I left the bottom blank because I just couldn't find the words that I wanted to write. 

Then, at Grandpa's funeral this morning, one of the pastors mentioned this very verse and said that when we have faith, we live differently.  We live eternally.  We know that God (and His plan) is right and good. Our lives reflect that faith when we care for others.  Grandpa was a giver and a doer.  He was most happy when he was helping someone else.  He lived out his faith. He did it because he remembered God's love and shared it with others.  Those are the words.  

I grabbed an extra program from the funeral home today.  I want to add it to the back of the prayer in my bible as a reminder that faith is living differently, giving and doing, sharing God's love. I'll always have Grandpa's life as a reminder of what living a faithful life looks like. 

I'm so thankful for the years that I had with Grandpa. I'm reminded this week that life is fleeting.  We have a limited number of days to love others.  One day, I hope people say the same about me, that I lived out my faith, remembered God's love, and shared it with others. 

Christie 💙

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