Its been a hard day, at the end of a hard 6 days.

Lisa's grandmother, "MeMother" as we all called her, passed away last Friday. She was Lisa's last living grandparent, and they were close. She had been in declining health for several years, and had been in a nursing home in recent years. We got the call a week ago Monday, during my aforementioned vacation, that she had taken a turn for the worse, and might not make it through the week. It was a good thing we had not made any plans, as we got the call Friday morning of her passing. Even though it was expected, it was no easier when the news finally came. We spent the weekend going back and forth between Newnan and Dacula, for family times, the viewing, and I spoke at her funeral, delivering the eulogy while my old friend and mentor in ministry, Keith Moore, brought the message. In all, it was a beautiful memorial for a beautiful, godly woman, whom we who know Christ will see again. Keith called the service a "home-going celebration", and it was aptly named. "We do not grieve as those who have no hope...", as Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:13. Still, it was hard to say goodbye, and Lisa finally wept fully Sunday night back at our house, on the front porch at midnight.

Today, Maddey, our 13 year old chihuahua, took a turn for the worse as well. Her health had been declining over the past year, losing much of her eyesight, several of her teeth, and contracting canine diabetes, which compounded her health problems. We were giving her insulin shots daily, but her health still deteriorated. She peed all the time, became unable to hold down food, and today we found her under our bed, breathing hard & heavy and unable to stand up.

It was time.

We took her to our local vet, who gently gave her the injection to put her down. She quietly and calmly died in our hands, kissing her head and stroking her back. It was a good death of a beloved family pet. It was especially hard on Lisa, not only because of MeMother's recent passing, but also because Maddey had been a gift from her to us, 13 years ago. Again, a difficult goodbye. We brought her body home and buried her down near the creek, where we buried Ivey, our first-ever dog, back in 2003.

God always seems to give His grace and loving presence in our sorrow, and I believe the Bible is clear that He is "near to the broken-hearted" Psalm 34:18. And so we allow ourselves to grieve, but we remember the gift of memories with those we love- and we look forward to the day when God will "make all things new", and the reunion will never end. No more goodbyes.

Amen.