Yesterday was TJ's funeral. The amount of people in attendance was staggering. TJ truly affected many people and his family is truly amazing which is another reason that so many people were there- to support the family. He was laid to rest with full military honors- Amazing Grace played on bagpipes; Taps played on the trumpet; 21 gun solute; and a fly over by 3 F-18's! The San Joaquin National Cemetary in Santa Nella is where TJ was buried and it is beautiful and peaceful there... something I will never forget.
Pastor Dave from NLCC was the officiating pastor for the service. He did an amazing job- I know that I couldn't think of anyone better to be the one who read passage, talked about TJ and read letters that all his family members wrote. He shared a story with everyone that I want to share with you because the images that this story gave me were surreal and so very comforting. I won't be able to convey this message as well as Pastor Dave but here goes...
To set the story up Pastor Dave was talking about how sad everyone was and how scary death can seem to some people- even to those who believe in Christ... Pastor Dave once read a story about a woman whose son had a terminal illness. He wasn't very old- maybe 10 or so. The boy tried to make the best of his situation and as the days went on and the child's body was letting go the woman started to dread the day that her son would ask a certain question. Finally, the day came when her son turned to his mom and said, "Mom what will it be like to die?" The woman, who had no idea how she was going to answer this question before that point suddenly knew what to say... "Hon, do you remember when you used to fall asleep in the car and then the next morning you would wake up in your own comfy bed?" The son replied, "yes." And the mother continued, "Your dad would carry you so gently from the car to your room making sure that you were always comfortable so that you wouldn't wake until morning. That will be what dying is like- falling asleep with us here and then waking up in a beautiful room that God has prepared for you. Jesus will carry you from here to heaven and you won't realize it until you wake up with Jesus there."
I think that story is AMAZING and so comforting. What an image I now have in my head of Jesus carrying me like a sleepy child to my place in heaven with him- it's exactly how I now picture TJ...
I got to talk to TJ's mom after the services... While I thought I would have to hunt her down to say something comforting she actually FOUND me! She told me that she told TJ about our son and how happy we seemed at C's baby dedication at church. She said that he was so excited for us and had hoped to see me when he came home... that stopped me in my tracks. Here she is grieving the loss of her son, yet she has uplifting words for me!?! What an amazing family TJ was apart of and I truly hope to be able to stay in contact with them through our church family...
M
Prayer Request: Please be praying for TJ's parents, sisters and fiance'- that they have God's strength given to them daily and that they can feel his arms of comfort wrapped around them whenever they miss TJ...
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