Cling to the Promise

My husband’s roommate from Oakwood College (now University) visited our home each week for Sabbath dinner. He was a kind and humorous person.

After pastoring for more than forty years, he retired from ministry but remained busy with church and community activities. Every Christmas, he would visit his children in California and stay a while. One year, he started his visit a little earlier and left for California in November. His daughter had plans to take him and the family on a cruise while he was there.

We were happy for him but cautioned him to be extremely careful because he was over eighty years old, and it was during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He promised us he would. Although we missed his visits each Sabbath, we would hear from him at least twice a week. Then, it happened.

For two weeks, we did not hear from him at all.

We called his cell phone, but our calls went to his voice mail.

Unfortunately, we did not know how to contact his children.

Anxiety set in. We prayed each day, asking God to help us find our friend. God answered our prayers by helping us remember his daughter’s first name.

I could not remember her last name, though I did remember that she owned a horse ranch. My daughter suggested I search the internet using his daughter’s first and maiden names, so I did. I even included the words “horse ranch” in the search.

Lo and behold, I found her and even a photo of her and her family at the horse ranch! At the bottom of the website, I noticed a phone number.

I called, and the daughter’s husband answered.

He gave the phone to his wife, and I explained who we were and how concerned we were. She remembered us and told us they were on their way to the hospital to say goodbye to her father because he was dying from COVID-19.

Though we never had an opportunity to say our final goodbyes, we cling to the promise, “ ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:4, NIV).

We look forward to heaven, where we will never be apart again.

Until that day, let us cling to God’s promises as we get ready for His return!

Vivian Brown