God has blessed me with awesome friends. I mean friends who love Jesus, who love to laugh, and who are there for each other. Suzanne is one of my closest friends. We can sit together and talk about Jesus for hours!! This picture is Suzanne, her husband Bryan, Jeff, and I. The 4 of us get to do a lot of fun things together. We’ve even been able to go on 2 one month mission trips to the Dominican Republic – Love Them!

Last night I got to sit and talk with her about her sweet sister, Terry, who died Christmas morning of cancer. Suzanne was right by her side as Terry went to heaven. Terry was a follower of Jesus and as she was dying, Suzanne said there was an absolute peace about her. Not only was she at peace but she actually had a glow to her face, a light emanating from her.

Suzanne shared with me some of the details of her sister’s last few days. They read the Bible to her, they played worship music and they told her how much they loved her. Suzanne kept a dry eye (unlike me) and looked joyful as she told me all this.

Near the end of our conversation, she told me how God had spoken clearly to her through her sister’s dying process. At this point in the story Suzanne’s eyes well up with tears for the first time. She said as she was placing drops of water in her sister’s mouth because she was so dehydrated and God reminded her at that moment of Jesus’ death on the cross.

Her tears flowed because she thought about those who were there when Jesus died. Those who loved Jesus weren’t able to put drops of water in his mouth to ease his thirst. They couldn’t place their hands on Him and whisper in His ear how much they loved Him.

Her tears flowed because she thought about what Jesus did on the cross. He was crucified with no comfort offered to him. When He was so thirsty all they offered Him was vinegar.  He didn’t hear the whispers of how loved He was, instead, He heard the ridicule of the Roman guards. Suzanne cried because she was so thankful that Jesus was willing to die on the cross so her sister could be in heaven.

As I listened to Suzanne speak about Jesus, I wished the whole world could hear her. They would be changed because they would so want what Suzanne had:

Peace – even as her much-loved sister died

Love – for those around her,  for Jesus and she felt so loved by God

Joy – because she knew where her sister was

God wants you to have true peace, love, and joy. Believe in Him, draw closer to Him, and trust in His plan. What a difference this will make in your life.