Saturday, April 3, 2010

SHADOW ON THE STONE

Dear friends of the little brown light…it’s been a while since I have written to you. Judy Burton and June DePriest…I thank you both for your BARNABAS words of encouragement whenever I lag behind in this work. This weekend is very special to all of us who understand the power of the cross and the power of the resurrection. There is just something about Heaven that I can’t wait to see…actually, He’s a SomeOne named Jesus. Then there are those other SomeOnes who are already there ahead of us who also make Heaven a special place.

This is the weekend each year that we can remember all that Jesus accomplished for us on the cross and from the tomb…I hope you spent some time this past week walking through the final week of His life…the last supper, the washing of feet, the song as they left the room headed out of Jerusalem, through the Kidron Valley and up the Mt. of Olives and into the Garden of Gethsemane. Peter, James and John went into the garden a little deeper with Jesus and fell asleep. The Passover Moon was probably shining above, giving light to the dark deeds yet to be accomplished. The prayers and blood and sweat and tears of Jesus as He prayed to His Father. The betrayal, the kiss, the soldiers and religious leaders, the bonds…the all night long illegal trials…the mockings and beatings…the thorns that pierced His brow…the nails that pierced His hands and feet…the painless sword that pierced His side…the pain that pierced His heart…the center cross…the thief that said no and the thief that reached Paradise…the gamblers at the foot of the cross…when we say no to Jesus, we gamble and lose. The two friends who came and took Him down from the cross and buried Him. The silence of the Friday evening Sabbath. The silence of Saturday (SAD-OLD-DAY) and Saturday night. The sunrise on the first day of the week after Sabbath…THE SON ROSE!

I take great joy in this news. We serve a risen Savior! Here is my article for the week…I believe the reading of it will declare my hope and trust in the
Living Savior!

LITTLE BROWN LIGHT
SHADOW ON THE STONE
There are three times when you visit the cemetery that you won’t need a map or a guide to the location of the grave. The FIRST time is the day of the funeral and burial. The grave is easy to find. Just watch for the crowd of people and the little tent with the chairs underneath. Depending on how close you were to the one being mourned, you might be driven there in a black car and led to a reserved chair under the tent. The SECOND time is the day you return to read the words on the stone. The location of the grave is still freshly etched in your memory. On the first visit, you are numb from the loss. On the second visit, you are reminded of the finality of the loss.

Yesterday, Dad and Elsie and I went by Centuries Memorial in Shreveport, Louisiana, to read those words on the stone. The words were spelled correctly: Wera Gayle Daniel Loving Wife Mother and Granny. The dates were written correctly: Jan 12 1960 Sep 7, 2009. A beautiful gold cross separated the two dates instead of the usual “tombstone dash.” That gold cross gives witness that her birth and homegoing dates were bookends guarding a life lived with Jesus in the center. I remember both of those days and every day in between. She was my baby sister. Our greatest comfort was that we know WHERE she is and WHO is holding her now. Wera believed in Jesus. She is living with Him in the presence of God the Father, outside of time, alive eternally. One day, because of our faith in Wera’s Jesus, we will join her there.

I think it was when I was taking a photo of the words on the stone that I found my greatest moment of comfort. The bright sun was directly behind me and I fought to keep my own shadow off the stone as I snapped the picture. The words of David’s Shepherd Psalm 23 rolled into my soul: “…yea, though I walk through valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me…”. Death is just that for believers…the valley of the shadow. Death has lost its sting. The grave has lost its victory. Jesus is alive. We (YOU!) can be alive forever by placing our (YOUR!) faith in Him and His resurrection from the dead. Three weeks from now we will remember the last week in the life of Jesus…washing of feet at the Last Supper, the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, the betrayal, the arrest, the denial, the scourging, the crucifixion, the death and the burial. Praise the Lord, we can also celebrate the raising of Jesus from the dead. As He walked out of that tomb, Jesus cast HIS shadow ON death and declared LIFE!

Oh, yeah. I almost forgot that THIRD visit to the cemetery. For believers, no guide will be needed on that day, either. Believers will be the only ones not in attendance at their own funerals. The bones in the box are just the shell. Just like my sister, believers will have a reservation to attend another celebration:
Jesus invited them to live in Heaven with Him and they said yes.
They can be heard to say, “WHADAYAH MEAN LOSS?”
+B+B+
Becky Brown
www.littlebrownlight.com



Becky Brown
Founder and Keeper
Little Brown Light Ministries
POBOX 180727
Richland, Mississippi 39218
Phone 601.885.8448
email: becky@littlebrownlight.com
website: www.littlebrownlight.com
blogspot: www.littlebrownlightblog.blogspot.com