From Death Into the Arms of Jesus

June 15, 2025
 
Reflections from the Heart of Allan Redenius
Too many times, as a pastor I have walked through the Valley of the Shadow of Death with so many of my family, so many of my friends.  No journey, no walk the same.  But the end of the journey is always the same, one last gasp for air.  What follows then is a serene silence.  For loved ones left behind, suddenly it is the realization that, though they may think they have prepared for this moment, when it arrives, they are not.  The silence and serenity of the moment is often broken with cries of anguish.
 
To me, the moment of death is a most holy moment for those who love the Lord.  Other than the moment of being born again, death has to be the second most holy moment in the life of a Christian.  It is the moment they step into the presence of Jesus and see Him, for the first time, face to face.
 
I've been there at numerous moments of death.  There was a time when something within me caused me to look upward in the hopes of seeing an angel, there to receive the soul of the departed believer.  At the moment of my mom's death, and for that matter, at the moment of my dad's death, both times I looked around the room for that elusive angel.  Believe it or not, on both occasions I did see that angel.  The first angel I saw was lying right there before me.  Her name was Mom.  Four years later, as my dad breathed his last, I saw another angel lying before me.  His name was Dad.  
 
I no longer look around for that angel at the time of death.  What now I see before me, in the face of my departed loved one or friend, is the face of Jesus in whose image we have all been created.  Yes, death is a most holy moment for those who love the Lord.
 
Ironically though, in the quiet, in the holiness, in the serenity of the moment, life barges in with no respect at all.  There is laughter in the hall.  The television has never been turned off and still drones on with the mundane news of the day.  There is a frenzy and a hurry to call others as to what has happened.  There is no time to sit in the quiet and reflect.  No time to absorb the meaning of life.  Here is some sage advice.  At the death of a loved one, take a moment and be with God.  After all, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.”  (Psalm 116:15)
 
In His grip
Pastor Allan
 
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