Sonshine

(As you can see to the right, I finally joined Twitter to see what the fuss was all about. Please feel free to follow me, I have no followers yet!)


Yesterday was Scott's funeral. It was definitely unlike any funeral I've ever been to, but in a good way. It was raining cats and dogs when I got to the church before it began. I was SOAKED, despite the fact that my sister and I were sharing an umbrella outisde.

The service began with Luke's band playing 3 or 4 upbeat worships songs. Angela said Scott would have wanted us all to rock out in remembrance of him, and I think she's right :-) The last song they played was a Casting Crowns song, "Praise You in this Storm." It was the perfect song, and Angela is claiming it as her own in this time. My favorite lyrics in the song are in the chorus: "I'll praise you in this storm, and I will life my hands. For you are who you are, no matter where I am. Every tear I've cried, you hold in your hand. You never left my side. And though my heart is torn, I will praise you in this storm." And that song is so true. God doesn't change no matter what situation we are going through. And there is always the promise of "sonshine" when the rain stops.

Our youth pastor, Alex, led the service. Angela had asked him to, because he and Scott had worked together with the middle school youth group and had gotten to know each other pretty well over the past few years. After the worship songs were over, he invited anyone to share a story, thought, or memory about Scott. This part of the service went on for a whole hour because so many people had so many great memories to share about Scott. He was completely full of life and there was never a dull moment while he was around! So we laughed and cried as people shared their memories.

Then pastor Alex gave a small sermon (for lack of a better word) about Scott and his relationship with the Lord. It was at that time that I remembered a moment back in the spring from our young adult Bible study. Scott and Angela were in our Bible study, and I remembered Scott coming with a heavy heart one week. When we were giving prayer requests, Scott said that his family had just really been on his heart and mind all week. He didn't have the closest relationship with his parents or brothers. None of them were saved, and they weren't interested at all. They would pick on Scott and make fun of him for becoming a Christian. Scott was worried about their reckless and unhealthy lifestyle. He just wanted them to listen to the message, and have their hearts softened to be able to receive it. And I don't claim to know God's plans or His reason for doing things, but I do know that he has a reason for EVERYTHING. Even Scott's death. And at the service yesterday, Alex told the story of The Prodigal Son. He compared Scott to the story, and shared how he had been living in sin, but completely surrendered his life to the Lord and became saved. Alex shared that anyone can make the decision that Scott did, and accept Jesus as well. He shared that he knew that's what Scott wanted more than anything. And I trust that God has softened the hearts of Scott's family and friends, and that at least they listened a little more closely yesterday while Alex spoke. So as sad as this situation is, Scott is in heaven now, and because of that, his prayer from the spring may have been answered yesterday. There's nothing to do but rejoice about that!

And after the service, as we walked out to our cars for the procession to the cemetery, the rain had stopped. It was beautiful and sunny outside. Only for about an hour, but it reminded me of "Praise you in this Storm" and how God will always bring the sun out again in our lives. Angela, Scotty, and Dillon (his wife and two sons) are in the midst of a horrible storm in their lives right now, but the sun will come out again!

It took a whole hour to get to the cemetery because we could only go about 35mph in the funeral procession. But after that, we had a beautiful "lunch" (it was almost 4:00 by that time, so it was more like an early dinner :-P) at a golf course down the road from the cemetery. It was a completely draining day, so late that evening, I made a pizza and Luke and I watched a movie while we ate it. And when I laid down in bed last night, I realized how I need to cherish every moment I have with Luke. A few tears came down my cheeks as I realized how much I'm sure Angela cherishes EVERY memory she and Scott ever made. It really puts things into perspective.

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I want to leave on a lighter note...this has been a heavy post so far! Tonight, JC and Luke are making cornhole boards as gifts for Father's Day, so I'm making dinner for them both. I decided to make a dessert too.

I took care of my cousin's plants while she was on vacation, so she gave me this as a "thank you."

It's a mix for a chocolatey dessert....here it is all finished
It turned out kind of disgusting-looking, but I think that's the point! And the little gummi-frogs crack me up. It is a well-known fact around here that I have a serious fear of frogs. Weird, I know. Snakes or spiders are no big deal, but show me a slimy frog, and I'll run in the other direction. Anyway, Rachel thought they were gummi worms when she bought it, and later realized they were actually frogs. Which she thought was even more perfect for me! lol

So we'll have that for dessert tonight. Have a great Thursday!!