GOD’S LOVE AND GOODNESS CONTINUE
The Word of God says the Lord shows us his great love and compassion ever day (Lamentation 3:22-23).
In a previous testimony–Testifying of God’s Love and Goodness–I shared how the Lord had forgiven me, and worked patiently with me and my wife Jean to repair our broken marriage. He also proceeded to fixed problems between my wife and her mother, before he took my wife to live with him. In testifying and sharing, I am hopeful the Lord will be glorified, and others will be encouraged to trust and love and testify of him more.
Though the Lord had decided to take my wife to our heavenly home to live him (God knew she had a fast-acting terminal cancer) he continued to bless us before he took her. He arranged for us to spend quality time together; and he worked on repairing Jean’s strained relationship with her mother. (Romans 8:28)
GOD BLESSED ME AND MY WIFE WITH QUALITY TIME BEFORE HE TOOK HER
We discovered my wife Jean had a fast-acting terminal cancer. Her cancer was not remissible as mine had been. I was stunned. However, when Jean realized the Lord was about to take her to be with him, she wanted to spent our last days together going places we had enjoyed together. The Lord impressed me to make this a top priority—and I did (Ephesians 5:25).
HE HELPED US IN HEALING MY WIFE’S STRAINED RELATIONSHIP WITH HER MOTHER
On an occasion when Jean and I went to one of our favorite restaurants, she wanted her mother to come with us. Jean had told me about her strained relationship with her domineering mother; and I could sense the love side of my wife’s “love-hate” feelings reaching out to her mother. The Lord convinced me to assist her in any way I could in trying to heal her relationship with her mother. (John 15:12)
I wanted to see my wife completely healed of any residual feelings of any resentment toward her mother, like the Lord had healed her hurt feeling toward me. Our sharing this time together at a restaurant seemed to have a therapeutic effect. Jean told me (while her mother was distracted) “I know you did this [get-together with her and her mother] for me.”
The Lord allowed me to see the struggle my wife was having in forgiving her mother for the pain her controlling mother had caused her over the years. When I was alone with my wife Jean, I often prayed with her and encouraged her to forgive her mother for any hurt her mother had caused. My wife would sometimes say, despite the pains her mother caused her, she was thankful to her mother for teaching her about the Lord. God was helping my wife to forgive her mother.
THE LORD AIDED ME IN BEING MY WIFE’S PRIMARY CAREGIVER.
I took leave from my job to care for her, while she was staying at her mother’s house. And I planned to retire when my leave expired to continue caring for her. But before I was to retire my wife was taken to the hospital for expert palliative care. However, before she went to the hospital, she looked at me lovingly and said: “I have always loved you.” She knew the Lord was very close to taking her to be with him.
HE SET UP THINGS FOR US TO SAY OUR LAST FAREWELLS.
At the hospital, I encouraged my wife to tell her mother she loved her. She told her mother, “I love you.” I urged Jean to go with Jesus. Jean said, “Lord take care of Steve.” I had stayed a few days in the hospital by her bed, but went home for a night of bed rest. I returned to the hospital the next morning. The Lord had taken my wife Jean to live with Him.
THE LORD HELPED ME TO ASSISTING MY AGING AND AILING MOTHER-IN-LAW.
After my wife had gone to be with the Lord death, I later assisted my feeble mother-in-law with some things my wife would have helped her with. I shopped and ran errands for her—helped her manage her financial affairs–spent time with her to allay some of her loneliness. After she entered a nursing home, I visited her regularly. And when she was hospitalized, I took her great grandson Ronnie, whom she helped to raise, with me to see her and encouraged her with scriptures and songs she liked. She always asked us to sing, “YES, JESUS LOVES ME.” The Bible says bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). The Lord took her at a time when we were not there.
WE ARE BLESSED TO TESTIFY OF GOD’S LOVE AND GOODNESS.
I have been blessed by God’s love and goodness in more ways than I can share here. But I am thankful to him for all he has done; and that I can at least testify in part. (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
While we are still on earth, we can testify of the Lord’s love and goodness. In our testifying of our Savior and Lord, we can glorify him and perhaps inspire others to love and trust him more. We can continue to testify of our Lord God’s love and goodness until he takes us to our heavenly home to live with him forever (John 14:3).
