A man of faith ~ my dad

My dad was an incredible man. He had a heart bursting with generosity and a mind so full of courage and wisdom. As some of you remember he suffered from a heart attack and two strokes in January, but started the recovery process quickly and was thriving off his new routine. He was healing well, the doctors were positive, and we all had faith.

However we were oblivious to what was going on internally. On the 30th April 2013 my dad suffered another heart attack and he passed away. In one moment I felt as though my world had fallen apart all around me. My heart could be heard beating from outside my chest and my ears muffled as though everyone was miming their words. He was gone, he wasn’t coming back, my dad died.

But in that moment too, it felt like a million angels had wrapped their wings around me and carried me through the days to come. My faith in Jesus leads me to believe that this was the beautiful power of the Holy Spirit, the loving, comforting power that overcomes all and leads us to peace and restoration. How comforting this presence has been as I have questioned, cried about and feared what happens in death, comforting because I believe with all certainty that my dad is in heaven. I know that my dad was a man of faith. He taught me so many things through the faith he had, especially in his last 4 months. He prayed unceasingly and he wept with a confident hope that God would work all things out. God promises this in His word- Romans 8:28 {And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him…}.

My best part about this verse is it says “we know”, not we think, or we predict, but WE KNOW that God works all our troubles, all our fears, all our successes out for us! There is comfort in knowing this, there is peace and rest for our hearts when we believe, as much as my dad believed, that God works it all out. He worked it out for my dad even though it wasn’t the way we, his family, wanted. My dad was frustrated, he couldn’t always remember things and he couldn’t see properly, so reading was hard and he could never watch the rugby or even see his dogs properly. My dad had pins and needles down the whole right side of his body and was constantly uncomfortable, yet he believed, he had faith that God would heal him and restore him fully. He was right ’cause where he is now he is whole, he is healed, there is no weeping or hurting, no sickness or pain. My dad is in heaven and he is restored! Not only is his body healed but his soul is healed, full of life, eternal life, and full of joy!

So it is this that our family can hold on to, this truth, this comfort. How lucky are we that when we live with the knowledge of Jesus and the presence of his Spirit, we are held, comforted and encouraged to believe and to have faith.

And the best part is that one day I will see my dad again at “a huge family reunion in heaven” {1 Thesalonians 4: 15 - 18 ~ The Message}.