Welcome to Day 1 of The Challenge!
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“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.”
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This evening, New Years Eve, I sit in a funeral home ringing in the new year in the face of death itself; the death of my Grandma, Frieda Louise Martens. I read the verse above several weeks ago when I was asked to write this, and as I sit here I have come to realize just what a beautiful picture of ‘seek those things which are above’ I have had in the form of Grandma’s life. While everyone gathered here misses her, it’s not a time of sorrow. Not at all, for after 84 years of a fruitful life, she passed into the presence of Christ to receive her eternal reward and hearing stories and seeing people who loved her, I have come to realize just how very much that fathomless reward had cost her!
She was raised during the depression and understood not only poverty but also God’s provision for needs. Being a farmwife and mother to five children, she canned and preserved more fruit and vegetables than you or I could ever hope to count and of this, she gave much away. She gave away thousands of pies and baked goods to God’s civil servants, the local police force, delivered many gifts to the poor, and to top it all off (and this earns major points in my book) taught a Sunday school class to ‘the least of these’ (a toddlers class) for over 50 years, until a car accident and failing health forced her to become a full-time prayer warrior. She spent her entire life serving those around her.
As I read the words in Colossians 3:1 “Seek those things which are above” I became excited because I am able to fully comprehend the joy that you are able to give to those while living, but also that you leave behind when you enter Heaven and see your Lord. By knowing Christ and understanding the power of servanthood Grandma sought those things which were above, and today we rejoice because of these good and perfect sacrifices that she raised to her Lord.
While I’ll miss Grandma, her death has challenged me to take up the gift that she left behind, her example of ‘seeking those things which are above” and becoming a servant of all.
~ Brooke E. Martens
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January 1st, 2010 at 9:00 am
Wow, what a personal application that the Father has given you and a wonderful heritage has been handed down !
Praise Abba,
Danielle
January 1st, 2010 at 11:42 am
That is a worthy challenge, Brooke. Thankyou so much for sharing!
January 1st, 2010 at 12:49 pm
Sounds like your Grandma was a wonderful servant for her Lord. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful story, Brooke. ~Blessings, Eden
January 1st, 2010 at 3:01 pm
i am sorry for your loss but i know that your grandma has taught you alot and remember she is with God our Lord and Savior
Thank you for sharing that story
January 1st, 2010 at 7:55 pm
Thank you all for your kind words. When I wrote this I wasn’t sure I wanted to use it… but then decided, that -this cycle of life and death? It is very real and how we live effects the lives of those we leave behind. It’s what I’m processing in a deeper way than I have in the past, mentally and spiritually, not exactly ‘merry and bright’, but it’s very much a part of ‘living the Journey’ and it’s changed my perspective for the ‘new year’.
Brooke~
January 1st, 2010 at 8:27 pm
Hey Brooke,
I understand. My Granny just passed away after living with us for 13 years. She too lived a life of godliness exemplifying hospitality to a degree that I hope to live up too. Praise God that he has helped you to see his purpose in all of this.
Anna