Another Day, Another Beginning!

I can remember one night watching a CSI type of show that was based in New York. It was actually a well thought out story that focused on an aging Veteran who had fallen on tough times and was homeless. One of the detectives had given his aging winter coat to the Goodwill. Little did this detective expect to get a call a week later that someone who was wearing his coat had died on the street from exposure from the New York winter. The call was made because his name was on the interior of the coat. This began a journey for this detective to find more about this man and then eventually have him buried in a military cemetery.

I know each day thousands die unnoticed by the world around them. Few worry about remembering these forgotten children of God whose lives slipped away without notice. I had the privilege of attending the memorial service of a close family friend. I had some sense that because of this individual’s talents, resources and passion that the service would be full of amazing music, vocals, testimonies and a living example of what happens what someone invests in another. Little did I expect this to last three hours, yet I was captivated the whole time as it brought back memories of my youth in an old downtown church where I cut my youth worker’s teeth, watched my mom and dad get involved and then see a multi-cultural faith journey be birthed in my younger brother.

I had decided a month prior that we would attend this funeral not knowing that my dad would pass a few weeks later. I know that it is too easy at times to be around people without really knowing them. I admit that the individual whose funeral we attended was someone that typically scared most people because of his stature and incredible voice that got your attention. I must admit that some of my impressions of this saint were a little off as I listened to student after student of his share their story of how their professor, mentor and friend had shaped their lives with God’s help. I laughed as each shared the story of listening to voice messages on their phone answering machines being reminded of this professor friend checking up on them.

As I listened it struck me that I could have had the many whom my dad had taught over the years stand up and share the same type of story of how Ed Bennett showed them that facing the difficult is just normal life! My dad’s passion to even embrace the impossible would be faced with the adage that this will take a little longer to attack and accomplish. I admit that entering into the large aging sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church is difficult for me as it brings back a large assortment of memories. I can remember my initial reaction to this very traditional church with a 20-foot pulpit that I had mocked over the years to the large 70-voice choir. Now it has become a reflection of my youth and now my adulthood that I see it as part of my life and I sense my faith home.

My parents had found a home at First Pres. that saw them make close friends over the years. As everyone aged together and saw their kids get married, have kids and for some even great grand kids. The reality is that now most are watching their friends fade into eternity. We have been back often to this church home to give our blessing and thanks to close friends who have lost a dad, mom, son or daughter. What struck me with this incredible tribute to a man who was able to transform a life and create beauty was a sense that this was intended for both the masterful musician, vocalist and also the untaught ear, like me. I was left again with a very difficult thought; how do you say thank you to someone who has loved you into this world and walked with you through all of your victories and defeats? I admit that I cried through most of the service not for our friend who is now directing the heavenly choir but for my dad who I desire to honor and cherish as this saint had been this day.

How do you say thanks to an incredible mom and dad that raised you to see the beauty of life and instilled in you a passion for excellence? I know that my challenge is to come up with a simple statement that expresses the essence of two lives that changed my world over the last 60 years. I struggle with thinking that a life will become a plaque on a large wall in a gigantic military cemetery. How is it possible to capture a life in a sentence?

I’m thankful that my heavenly Father is the one who welcomes the famous and unknown into his celestial mansion where each is received and given a place in the eternal glory with the same angelic celebration!