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Verse:For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. . . . And thus we shall always be with the Lord. —1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17, NKJV
My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2009. She did quite well for several years, but in 2017 I watched her grow weaker. Since we did not live in the same place, I had to travel to visit her. In recent years I had visited her twice annually. It was so painful to see her decline in health. I remember, many years ago, that my mom spent my fortieth birthday with me. Now in the summer of 2017, while visiting her, I celebrated my birthday again. On the morning of my birthday, my mom asked my sister (who was her caregiver) to hand her a special handbag. My mom took money from the bag and gave me the same amount of dollars that matched my age. Instantly I was overwhelmed with emotions of gratitude and sadness. Never again would I have the opportunity to receive another gift from my dear mother. I hugged and thanked her and then left her room as my emotions overcame me. I did not want her to see me crying. As I stepped outside, I cried, pouring out my heart to God.
That year I was able to visit Mother in April, June, July, and again at Thanksgiving time in November. We spent a lot of time talking to her and singing for her. Inspirational songs were also played for solace. The November visit to see Mother was the most difficult one. By this time, she was saying very little and couldn’t do much for herself. After being with her for nine days that November, I had to return home. On Sabbath, December 16, 2017, my mom passed quietly to her rest in Jesus. (In 2008, she’d been preceded in death by her dear husband, my dad.)
As much as I didn’t want to lose my mother, I comforted myself with the knowledge that Mom was no longer suffering. As she expressed her readiness to go to sleep in her Savior, I prayed that God’s will would be done. She had lived a full life and touched many. At eighty-four, she could say, as had the apostle Paul, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7, NKJV).
How I look forward to the day when she and I will be reunited. Thank God for this blessed hope! Thank God, as well, for fond memories of our loved ones until then.
Janice Fleming-Williams