No More Tears

Posted on October 11, 2021 by Catey Stover in Victory Call

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.

 (Revelation 21:4 ESV)

 

My Dad was a strong, athletic man his whole life, so when he collapsed and ended up in the hospital, we all thought he would recover and return home quickly. As infection ravaged his body and hindered his breathing, it became apparent that this was a physical battle he might not win. He fought hard for six weeks, but on a Sunday morning, knowing that his organs were shutting down, we made the terribly difficult decision to take him off life-support and let him go. As our family stood around his bed singing hymns, his heart stopped beating and he opened his eyes in Heaven, seeing the Savior he so adored. We, however, were left to deal with the sadness of never feeling one of his hugs again or seeing him stride across the parking lot at Keswick in his inimitable way. Part of the pain for me personally was in the decision to take him off life-support. I wondered if he heard us discuss it and was afraid or not ready. The thought of that was torture for me.

At the memorial service, there were a number of recorded messages from people of significance in Dad’s life and ministry. Toward the end of the service, without any warning, a voice came on that sent me into instant sobs: it was Dad, his voice strong and clear, teaching a devotional on Heaven from one of the Hymn Sings! We had not heard his voice for many weeks, and yet, here he was, talking about the place he was now occupying. That which he accepted by faith throughout his life, he was experiencing, with no more pain, no more tears, no more night, no more struggling to breathe. His deep faith had become sight. He was far better off than any of us left behind in this difficult world.

My father’s promotion to Glory was a time to affirm that what I had been taught was true: absent from the body means present with the Lord. No more doubts, no more questioning decisions. He is safely home.

 

This Victory Call was originally published in Real Victory for Real Life Volume 3

Written by Cherri Raws Freeman: Cherri Raws Freeman is the author of the book Beside Still Waters: Discovering Peace in the Midst of Your Child’s Addiction. She and her husband Joe, a graduate of the Colony of Mercy, founded Love Them to Life, a support ministry for mothers of addicts. Cherri is a graduate of Wheaton College and the mother of 5 adult children, 2 of which struggled with addiction issues.

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: ¹³ For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” –Galatians 5:13-14