The picture I took on my way to the retreat as Grandpa was only hours from Heaven.
You would think that with me writing on this blog for the last 2 years, I would know how to scan a picture, but obviously I do not. :)
A year ago last September, we went to church, like any other Sunday. Reading the bulletin on the way home from church, a women's retreat captured my attention. Thinking to myself: a night away and to make some SMOY friendships is just what I need. I thought- even better, I'll call my sister Julie, to go with me so we can catch up and "hang out."
The next week, we are unloading our sleeping bags from our cars, only to sleep on air mattresses in the school classroom at church. An hour later, as we are sitting at different tables, we find out that this time next year, we are the lucky ladies to be giving the retreat!
Here we are, a year later, a bit wiser, and a whole lot closer (to each other and to God), and don't regret one minute of it. After the retreat, we met a couple times a month and then weekly towards the end to prepare for the retreat. The friendships formed, the power of prayer, and the amazing presence of the Holy Spirit were just a bit of what we experienced together. What a legacy of women I was given in my life. I thank God for allowing me to cross paths and hopefully form lifelong friendships with my new "sisters."
The weekend we were to give the retreat, my grandpa passed away. He had been in and out of the hospital for the three weeks prior, but he is such a strong man, we still had hope he would pull through again. The God who held Grandpa as a young man, through all his years of farming and through those years of loss and struggle. The God who pursued him all his life and gave him grace when he faltered. The God who blessed him with a beautiful family and 90 years to enjoy them.
Grandpa was a dignified man, and he died a dignified death. That moment at home at mom and dad's with Hospice, we experienced the peace that comes from righteousness in Christ. Grandpa's death has been a powerful reminder that I will one day be the one in that hospital bed. The way I live my life matters, the choice I make affect generations to come, and I want to go out the way Grandpa did. With peace and faithfulness and complete trust in Jesus, to carry my from this life into the next. What a legacy he has left.
