A few months after my 23-year-old son was killed by an unidentified predator, I was given a gift that will carry me through the rest of my life with peace, forgiveness and excitement.
It was an early, misty morning. My daughter and I were driving through our old neighborhood when I saw a black pickup truck stopped in the road. I slowed the car and waited.
A young man got out of the truck and walked toward me. It was my son! I can tell you what he was wearing, right down to the thick blue hoodie and white T-shirt underneath. His hair was a little longer, and he looked as though he had been working out.
He smiled as he walked up to my window and said, “Do you have any money? I’m hungry,” the same words I’d heard him say so many times before. My heart felt as though it could burst. Afraid to turn away, I glanced over at my daughter to see if she could see him too; she nodded and smiled back at me.
Knowing I’d only have a moment, I quickly leaned over and gave him a tight hug — and that was it! As I woke from sleep, I cried. I can’t describe the pain and sadness I felt, but I was also happy. I knew right away that God had allowed me to see my boy, to know that he is safe in the arms of Jesus.
I share this with you in hopes of encouraging you toward gladness — not gladness that rejects mourning, but gladness that hopes in our future as believers. When you lose someone close to you, you don’t get over it like people want you to, especially if that someone was a child. I think of my son every day. I’m encouraged by God’s promise that I’ll see him again some day, forever!
Ask God for comfort. He’ll give it in the most personal way. And remember in our mourning and sadness that Jesus has already purchased our healing, wholeness and future reunion with those we’ve lost. Today, remember His goodness.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. —Matthew 5:4, NIV
Prayer: Father God in heaven, we lift up those who’ve lost a loved one and are hurting. Please comfort them. Give them a new perspective, a vision that will make them smile. In Jesus’ name, amen.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Marla Browne works as a Sponsor and Donor Income Processing Associate at the Global Ministry Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
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