Saying Goodbye

“But now he has died; why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.” 2 Samuel 12:23
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   Those of you that know our family knows that our son joined the United States Army in April of 2016.  We have always been very proud of him and we continue to be. The difficult part in all of this is that he is stationed overseas.  I am sure that any parent that has had to go months without seeing your child can sympathize with us. We were over joyed back in the spring when he flew home for two weeks. It was the high point of our year. We cooked on the grill many nights and took him to all of his favorite restaurants.  He and I went and played golf, like we use to. He helped me with several projects around the house and yard. It was heaven on earth for fourteen days. Then the inevitable happened it was time to take him back to the airport. It was time for him to leave. It was time to say, “Goodbye”.
 None of us like to say, “Goodbye” to our loved ones. It was a day that I was not looking forward to, but our family had made a decision that had made the parting a little easier. A day or two before he was to leave, we booked plane tickets to go and see him this fall. Now this is praise and a prayer request, because none of us have flown before. Saying, “Goodbye” was easier knowing that we were going to see him soon. It is a comfort knowing that we can go where he is.
In this Bible verse we see that David and Bathsheba’s son has died. David has spent countless nights on his knees begging for God to spare the child’s life. It was not God’s will, and their son died. David’s servants are worried about how he will react when he finds out. They don’t know how devastated he will be or even what he may do to himself or those that are around him.
 David surprises everyone. He gets up. Looks around and has a peace about him because he knows where his son is spending eternity. As much as David was going to hate the temporary separation that they were going to have, he knew that one day that he could go and be with him.
 Beloved we can have that same assurance.  How? We need to ask Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior and make sure that our loved ones have done the same thing. Death does not have to tear families apart. Yes there may be a short separation, but eternity waits for you with them and Jesus. Yes there will still be some degree of pain and longing, but it only last for a while
Do you love your family? Make sure that you and they have a personal relationship with Jesus. It is the only way to keep them together for all of eternity.