parting

Bonhoeffer in "Spiritual Care" says, "The pastor should visit the cemetery as often as he is able. This is wholesome for him personally, for his preaching, for his spiritual care, and also for his theology!"

As we are reminded of our depravity, our souls that hunger, and the thirst that is never quite quenched; when we once again are faced with the impossible avoidance of goodbyes, we are directed back again to our knees - back to the One whom we never have to bid farewell and where the utterances of a goodbye will never be present.

Goodbyes leave quite a void, and voids are anything but pleasant. They are not easily filled and oftentimes leave scars that can remain tender for many years, but it is these scars that shape, remind, and usher us further into the depth that knows no goodbyes.

May we not attempt to bypass the pain or to usher one to quickly mend, but to acknowledge the One in whom goodbyes are not present, and with Him, sit in the pain and allow Him to apply the healing balm as He reaches forward to do so in the time He knows best.

*Another unpublished post from 2009, and still very, very applicable for today.