Hope Despite the Odds
August 17, 2023Residual Grief
October 9, 2023
One of my favorite sermons my pastor preached a few months after my husband passed away came from 1 Corinthians 15. It had to do with resurrection bodies, and I was excited about it - captivated by the topic. I was eager to hear and learn more about resurrection bodies. One of the main points that stuck with me (it still sticks!) from that sermon is that these bodies will be similar but different. 1 Corinthians 15:35-41 says: "But someone will say, "How are the dead raised? What kind of body will they have when they come?" Foolish one! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And as for what you sow - you are not sowing the future body, but only a seed, perhaps of wheat or another grain. But God gives it a body as He wants, and to each of the seeds its own body. Not all flesh is the same flesh; there is one flesh for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is different from that of the earthly ones. There is a splendor of the sun, another of the moon, and another of the stars; for one star differs from another star in splendor." Can I just say this was (and is) exhilarating news for me? Because I had never sat down and considered the meaning of resurrection bodies until my circumstances caused me to give it more thought.
The promise of resurrected bodies gives me something to look forward to, and I can't wait to see Jamaal's resurrection body. The author of 1 Corinthians continues in chapter 15, verses 42-46, writing: "So it is with the resurrection of the dead: sown in corruption, raised in incorruption; sown in dishonor, raised in glory; sown in weakness, raised in power; sown a natural body, raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So it is written: The first man Adam became a living being; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit. However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, then the spiritual." I'll be honest; I think this is very cool - I love knowing there are heavenly or spiritual bodies. There is hope and joy in the promises of God - the promise of eternal life and resurrection bodies. I get excited about what this means for Jamaal and me. I feel joy and happiness when I daydream about what Jamaal's resurrected body might look like, how good it will feel to have him hold me again, kiss him, and hold his hands again. I've learned that to get through the missing of my husband I have to look forward to all of the agains we'll share. I have to look forward to new shared experiences together.
By focusing on all of the agains rather than on missing him, I can get through each day a little easier than when this journey first began. By imagining all of the experiences Jamaal and I will have, I can deal with all the events at which I miss having Jamaal with me. I can go back to reimagining our plans, goals, dreams, and ambitions. I can think about all or most of the things we wanted to do and not feel that overwhelming sense of loss over our original plans. Something I read in Unto the Hills, a daily devotional by Billy Graham, really lifted my spirits. In the January 26th entry, Mr. Graham wrote, "In my own life I have been privileged to know what some of the dying saints said before they went to heaven. My grandmother sat up in her bed, smiled, and said, 'I see Jesus, and He has His hand outstretched to me. And there is Ben, and he has both of his eyes and both of his legs.' (Ben, my grandfather, had lost a leg and an eye at Gettysburg.)"
"My grandmother sat up in her bed, smiled, and said, 'I see Jesus, and He has His hand outstretched to me. And there is Ben, and he has both of his eyes and both of his legs.' (Ben, my grandfather, had lost a leg and an eye at Gettysburg.)"
The first time I read this devotional I cried. Then I felt joy at the thought of being welcomed into heaven by my sweet Jamaal and my Lord and Savior. On top of that, this particular devotional reminded me that my prayers for Jamaal's complete restoration were answered. I'm grateful that his lungs, kidneys, heart, brain, and other body parts are fully restored - he is healthy. It caused me to praise God and sparked my hope for the future. I'm looking forward to being with him in eternity. Some of my favorite Scriptures deal with eternal life, resurrection, and spiritual bodies; here are some of my favorites:
- "Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live." -John 11:25 HCSB.
- "For this is the will of My Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." -John 6:40 HCSB.
- "Even after my skin has been destroyed, yet I will see God in my flesh." -Job 19:26 HCSB.
- "For if we have been joined with Him in the likeness of His death, we will certainly also be in the likeness of His resurrection." -Romans 6:5 HCSB.
- "Everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die - ever. Do you believe this?" -John 11:26 HCSB.
- "But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." -1 Corinthians 15:20 HCSB.
- "Listen! I am telling you a mystery: We will not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed." -1 Corinthians 15:51-52 HCSB.
- "For this corruptible must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal must be clothed with immortality. When this corruptible is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the low. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Therefore, my dear brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord's work, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." -1 Corinthians 15:53-58 HCSB.
- "My goal is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, assuming that I will somehow reach the resurrection from among the dead." -Philippians 3:10-11 HCSB.
- "For He must reign until He puts all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be abolished is death." -1 Corinthians 15:5 HCSB
- "Since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in the same way God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep through Jesus." -1 Thessalonians 4:14 HCSB.