He has Risen! He has Risen indeed

As I was sitting in Church yesterday on Easter morning, I started thinking about my Aunt Phyl who died a couple of months ago. I thought of her as we were singing I Know that My Remember Lives. I thought of how her voice was joining the throng of angels singing in heaven, and what a comfort it was that she was free of pain and had joined her many friends and relatives in heaven.

I also realized that most if not all o my relatives have died in the Spring. The first I remember vividly was my Grandmother Bremer. She was a no nonsense german women who loved her Lord and her family. I was a sophomore in college, and had been home visiting over Easter break. "We can dance at Pam's wedding" I teased her as I was leaving. My cousin was getting married in a month. The next day, I got a call from my Mom saying that Grandma had a massive stroke and died. At her funeral, the pastor talked about how the message of Easter Christ dying on the cross for our sins so that we could have everlasting life with him, was such a comfort to us, since we knew she was in heaven with Jesus.

In subsequent years, my Grandma Etzler, Grandpa Bremer, my dear father-in-law, Aunt Mag, and various other friends and relatives have died in early spring.

What comfort we can take in knowing that there are so many people waiting to greet us at the gates of heaven!