THE JOY WE SHARED
You believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy.
I Peter 1:8 (1)
The Breathing of One Joy:
When
my Grandmother, Rose DeLucia, closed her eyes toward her journey to awaken on
Heaven’s shore, a big part of me
just fell to the ground. My world was shattered. Nothing was the same. I was down for the count.
I
was hoping I could manage well without her – but I didn’t fare very well at all. I lost a dear friend. Grandma was the one with opened arms, a
ready welcoming smile, a warm embrace, a ‘Hello Dah'ling!’ Not only did we share laughter, we
breathed one joy ~ and it was that breathing of the same joy that was my
constant. Together, we breathed in
the joy of the Lord, the joy of laughing and conversing, the joy of seeing each
other and the joy of anticipating seeing each other again. She was the first one with whom I felt a spiritual connection. She knew who she was in the
Lord and in this world.
Even-tempered, slow to judge, slow to anger, quick to heal, to cover a
wound, quick-witted and wise, she was my friend. How much like me, was she! I found someone in this life who understood me without my
having to explain! And now, she was physically gone. It's not that I was unaware that she must leave this earth, some day. It was that even though we think we are prepared to say our final good-bye, we simply are not prepared. Oft
times, my Grandmother's understanding was in her eyes or in her smile. It was that palpable! And her hands, the hands of a
seamstress, were as gentle as her
character was strong. She held the
Holy Bible and turned its pages as though she were sifting through gold – and
she was – Truth’s gold. The truth
of the Christ of Calvary, the cross, the Resurrection and the opened tomb, Redemption, and Eternity
flooded those hallowed pages. I never really worked through the loss of her, thoroughly, though – the loss of
my maternal Grandmother, this woman of God.
It was lonely for a long, long time after Grandma passed. It was during that time that the Lord gave me the lyrics and piano melody to Sonnet of Hope (on last week's JOY PSALMS! entry). I play the music and read the words 'till today and I am comforted. . One day I will see her again…the promise of eternity will come to pass and the breathing of one joy will resume brighter and more alive. Heaven’s great splendor will blaze with the light of our Lord and Savior in our midst. With loved ones surrounding us and Heaven's symphony resounding, earth's sadness will be but a disappearing pebble erased from memory's stream. It will be replaced with 'joy unspeakable and full of glory.' (2)
It was lonely for a long, long time after Grandma passed. It was during that time that the Lord gave me the lyrics and piano melody to Sonnet of Hope (on last week's JOY PSALMS! entry). I play the music and read the words 'till today and I am comforted. . One day I will see her again…the promise of eternity will come to pass and the breathing of one joy will resume brighter and more alive. Heaven’s great splendor will blaze with the light of our Lord and Savior in our midst. With loved ones surrounding us and Heaven's symphony resounding, earth's sadness will be but a disappearing pebble erased from memory's stream. It will be replaced with 'joy unspeakable and full of glory.' (2)
Prayer:
Thank
you, dear Lord, for your promise that one day all tears shall be wiped away,
that all things will be made new, that the days will need no sun because you,
Lord, will be our bright and shining light.
In
Jesus name, Amen ….
© Nov. 2013 written by Carol T. Castagna
New Testament, Holy Bible NKJVThe Celebration Hymnal, Joy Unspeakable (c) 1997 by Word Music/Integrity Music, p.740
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