But there is another, greater body of believers who stand with you now, and all of us must join them someday. They are the ones who grasped the hand of Death and passed through the portal beyond our sight, and they have left a legacy for us that no one can deny, and those of us who were blessed enough to witness their passing must testify...
I give to you my Father's legacy; he gave me the greatest gift a man could give to his child, the gift of dying. I was privileged to be there when the verdict was announced, that cancer would grant him only short months. He wrested that death sentence from the doctor and turned it into a triumphal march of the spirit, a march that led him through treatments, months of reprieve, and finally to the gates of heaven itself. Not until he grasped the Hand of the Master himself did he let go of his grip on the sword; he wanted to live. But even more, he wanted to die like a soldier of Christ.
I give this to you, my Father's legacy to me. Give to your children the last vision of you crossing the River in a blaze of light; not in mourning, but in defiant joy against darkness, for the darkness has not overcome you. The final sound of your voice lifted in a song, the song they will sing when they cross the River to join at last with you and their God...
This is so beautiful and so obviously from your heart. Not only does it comfort LBGA I am sure, but it touches all of us.. Thank you so very much for sharing those very personal thoughts with us.