Optimist Roundtable 6/10

By Martha Sykes

This week my heart will struggle with the fact that it has been nine years since I had to watch the love of my life take his last breath on earth and slip away to the place that Jesus had prepared for him. My first question in my mind is “How did I ever survive without him for that long?”

Grief is a process and at this point in my life I can honestly share that without God by my side I would not be doing what I do or be where I am today. Sometimes, I’ve learned that I don’t have to try to be so strong when I am not. That is when I rely on Jesus.

For many years, I have read countless stories of people who have gone through difficulties and since these nine years that Wes has passed, I have realized many times that God has certainly become my strength. In Isaiah 49:5, these words are in my sight every day on my refrigerator, “My God has become my strength”.When we are weak, He is strong! When I need Him, He lifts me up!

Every night I thank God for giving me strength to get through another day! Since I was a child, I have sang Jesus Loves Me, this I know, and this is what I trust in every day. He is my strength, this I know. He sees every tear I cry, this I know. My faith is my rock, this I know. I could go on and on, but what I want people to know is that in my heart, I know God is real. I feel His presence every day and I trust that He will use me to do what He has planned for me until I leave this earth.

Wes and I had plans and the day he was diagnosed with cancer, we knew that it was all in God’s hands and we would have to deal with whatever happened. Of course, we had dreams that we would live long enough to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary.We had hopes that we could enjoy our older years together, but life has changed and I have made it this far, with God’s help.

Very often, people say to me “You’re so busy”. That is me and what I like to do, but that’s what keeps me going and I just say, “God keeps me busy”. If someone would have told me years ago that I would be preaching, officiating at funerals and weddings, or writing a weekly column for the paper, I would have chuckled. This is where my Lord has led me and I pray every day for Him to place me where He needs me.

Yes, life has changed. I have my tearful moments, but it’s all good!! It’s all normal. Sometimes the only way to heal our broken hearts, or to get through a day, is when we seem to fall apart. Tears may come in the night, but joy comes in the morning. There is a time to cry and a time to laugh. All this advice is found in the scriptures. God knows. That’s why He gave the wisdom to the people who wrote the Bible. Our message is there for us to share.

There is hope because the tomb is still empty. What we all need to remember in our sorrow is that God cares for us. My blessings are when I think of and thank God for the happy years that Wes and I had together. We raised our children and celebrated our grandsons. We created our happiness in our home that he built and through it all we knew who Jesus was and that is what I will treasure forever. For anyone who is grieving, I send this message of hope in Jesus and a prayer for your hearts to be healed.