Not Made for Goodbye

I had a phone conversation with a very wise woman this morning. Every time I speak with her I glean something, I'm encouraged, or I'm inspired. Of course we laugh a lot too...almost goes without saying! I started to get to know her at a retreat almost 4 years ago. We were in the mountains and since she's motherly she told all of us young'uns (she's from Louisiana) to go everywhere in groups of two or three because "here's how a bear counts...one, two, too many". Apparently alone we'd be breakfast but in 2's or 3's we'd be too much!

Anyway, she said "You know, I heard a preacher say a long time ago that we're not made for death." It fit in perfectly with something I heard another speaker say a few weeks ago "we're not made for goodbyes." No matter which way you say it, the fact is it's true. We're made for eternity. This comes from Ecclesiastes 3:11:

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."

This is why losing a loved one is so hard. It's contradictory to the eternity set in our hearts. But it's also why there is comfort -- this life is not the end, the graveside goodbye is not all there is for those in Christ. Praise God!