“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise Him.” Psalm 28:7
These words were written by David, thousands of years ago, and speak so clearly what my heart feels today. The past weeks have been a whirlwind of events and emotions and yet, I can’t help but rejoice and give God praise.
In early February, Olive and I traveled to my hometown to care for my dad while my mom was having trouble with her heart. Within two weeks my mom had been hospitalized; my sister and I had become full-time caregivers to my dad in his late-stage Parkinson’s (so grateful for this special time); my mom returned home with her heart still in afib and our family gathered around my dad as he left this world and went home to the Lord on February 13, 2022. The Lord was my strength and shield, my heart trusted in him, he helped me, and my heart leaps for joy as I reflect on all that transpired.
Death opens the door for reflection. A time to direct our distracted thoughts toward life after death, to look back on a life lived here on earth and celebrate or regret. Reflecting on my dad's life, we celebrate all that God has done and the peace and joy we have knowing he is with the Lord, fully healed of his Parkinson’s- walking, talking, and running again, as Olive often prayed for him.
We rejoice, because until 2008, my wonderful, moral, quiet, and humble dad, didn’t think he needed a Savior. Saved in 1979, my mom began praying for my dad’s salvation and sharing what she was learning in her Bible studies. As she grew in her walk with the Lord and raised us three daughters in a solid Bible-believing church, we all prayed for his salvation, shared with him the gospel and truths from the Word, and wrote him numerous letters sharing God’s love for Him.
Finally, after 29 years of family and friends praying for my dad and boldly proclaiming the truths of God’s Word to him, he said he couldn’t ‘not believe’ any longer. He surrendered his life to Christ, publicly proclaimed his faith through baptism, and clung to God’s promises when diagnosed with Parkinson’s later that year and as it progressed through the years.
In a society where so many don’t realize their need for a Savior and when so many around the world have never heard of Jesus- we pray we (believers) would be persistent in prayer and bold to share God’s Word and the hope we have in Christ! We thank you that through your partnership, you are doing just that- making Jesus known to the world and His Word available to all people!
“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV
To view my dad's obituary and catch a glimpse of who he was, visit https://wichmannfuneralhomes.com/obituary/steven-g-mueller/
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