"Well done, good and faithful servant!" Matthew 25:14-23
"...in my father's house there are many rooms..." John 14:1-7
At a time like this, at a death like this, we find ourselves lost in a sea of mixed emotions, and only God can save us.
On one hand, we're glad to have been blessed by the presence of such a one as Kim in this life at all, and relieved that she has been relieved of suffering;
On the other hand, how can you not wish and want someone back who was such a one as Kim?
This is a contradiction that you who love her will have to live with until Kim greets you with a shout, hug and smile on the other side. Kim has indeed taken up residence in the room God prepared for her in His great heavenly house; but I'm fairly certain that she hasn't spent much time there because she probably assigned herself to the meet and greet committee, helping other souls find their way to their rooms. You can take the girl out of retail but you can't take the retail out of the girl.
I didn't know Kim well at all, but you can tell a lot about someone by looking at the company they keep, and frankly the company that Kim kept was formidable, with Shane and the kids and grandkids at the core. Just by themselves the sisters were a force to be reckoned with, standing up defiantly shoulder to shoulder with Kim as you did. Cancer had never met a more intimidating opponent.
But between all of the family and the community- at- large who fought and gave and prayed on Kim's behalf, you must know that a higher power flowed among you, a spirit that said no to the power of death and darkness just as God says no to death and darkness through the cross of Jesus Christ.
But there was a time when such things were far from anyone's mind. Before the cancer, before the treatments, before Team Kim ever hit the road, back when it was Shane and the kids and grandkids and family and retail that anchored Kim's life, it was just that...Kim's life...that said no to the powers of darkness and death simply because Kim said yes to life so vigorously. She had a way of acknowledging the "giftedness" of living that really was inspirational, so I hear. I didn't know her then, but your stories today say that this is true.
And it can remain true, even as you who love her swim through this sea off mixed emotions. Because, when someone we love dies, we honor them by taking the best of them and making it our own.
So today we remember Kim the fighter, Kim the lover of life, Kim the good and faithful servant, Kim the believer in the promises of God and the promises themselves, the promise to lift us all out of death, just as He lifted Kim from death on the wings of an amazing sunrise into the home of God. God has saved Kim from sin and suffering and from this sea of grief and relief will save us, too. All these things we become and do and believe if we wish to honor Kim and the God who loves her, even past death, even as she takes up residence in that great, merciful and joyous house of God.
Let us pray: For the life of Kim Scheef Kirchhoff, heavenly Father, we give you thanks. May everything good and generous about Kim make a home in each of us. And may your Holy Spirit continue to work its loving, formidable power so that our grief may be balanced with joy, our hearts healed by your assurance that we will all meet again in the home which you have prepared for all who believe in you. In the name of Christ we pray...Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment