May God Have Mercy

Over the past two days I have attended the wake and funeral for a good friend of my boyfriend's family. I first met this beautiful, kind woman five years ago when Troy and I began dating. I quickly liked her and felt bonded to her and her husband. Their house was always warm and welcoming and their hearts were always full of love. She lost her battle with cancer last Thursday and her family and friends are still grieving...

Yesterday their tiny Church was filled to the seams with people who loved her, and it was a lovely service. We sat a few seats behind her husband and her family and I wanted to share with you what I observed from my seat.

As I watched her husband standing at the end of his pew, with his son on one side my heart broke for him. His gaze never wavered from the large image of his beautiful wife, projected on the wall of the Church. I realized something as I watched him... For all the years of his marriage his wife had been next to his side when things were the hardest and he needed someone's support. They were partners is every sense of the word, and the very best of friends. Yes, they had other friends of course, but at the end of the day when they needed a shoulder to cry on or words of encouragement they had one another. That is a beautiful gift.

Now though, he faced the hardest thing he's ever encountered. He lost his partner, his other half and his best friend. He didn't have her shoulder to cry on or hand to hold when the world handed him the hardest of pills to swallow. He now has to face the most life-altering changes he's ever experienced and he has to learn to live without the love of his life. That's the hardest thing- when all the dust has settled and everyone's gone home, he's left alone. He doesn't have his wife to sit next to and lean on. He doesn't have his best friend to encourage him to find the strength to go own...

Where do you go from there? How do you learn to live?

I wish I knew the answer to that and I wish I could heal the heartache. I don't though...only God can heal the most broken parts of us in those moments. Only God can bring us up from the darkest of days. Thankfully this man knows Him. Otherwise, how do you go on? If you don't believe you can lean on our Jesus, who knows the pain we feel, then where do you turn?

I know this is a sad post, but it's worth sharing. It provides us with something to think about.

Emily xo
May God have mercy on her soul!