The plans for this week have been made: On Tuesday, I will share a nice meal with Linda and her Legacy Village family; on Thursday, my family will join me in Richmond, Kentucky as we celebrate Thanksgiving with Linda’s siblings and their families. I am having a hard time wrapping my mind and emotions around what seems a bit surreal: This is the town where Linda wrote me love letters from the old house on Big Hill Avenue, the same house where we sneaked kisses in the living room, while keeping a watchful eye out for her father. Just down the road is the little church where we exchanged our wedding vows and promised we would be together until separated by death. Now, separated by less than two hundred miles, Linda will be living in her world, and I will be celebrating life with the people she loves so dearly. Six days ago, just before midnight, I was able to reconcile my conflicting feelings and wrote in my journal: “I am going to bed with the assurance that God is with me; I shall survive, thrive, and fulfill the remaining purposes God has for life!”

Command with a Promise

Boldly proclaiming my intentions, regardless of how noble they are, is not sufficient to carry me through the battles that are yet ahead. I must be aware of my social environment and heed God’s command and accompanying promise in order to bring about the spiritual victories I need, and He desires that I have. A continuous bombardment of conflicting information, cynicism and discouraging news in the media, combined with the absence of a clear prophetic voice in the church, is creating emotional instability, fear and despair in our country. For me to claim immunity would indicate I am in denial, or, even worse, demonstrate that I am being intentionally disingenuous. Therefore, I must measure my weakness and vulnerability against the surpassing greatness of God’s power. Thankfully, God has not left me to my own devices. Thanksgiving is not a once per year celebration. Rather, it is a way of life which has enabled the people of God to victoriously face the vicissitudes of life for the past two thousand years: 

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:4-7 NIV).

Personal Implementation

After nearly sixty years of ministry, I still have to remind myself that merely hearing the Word of God is not sufficient for change. I must receive the imparted truth and make it part of the very fabric of my life. In essence, my doing must always flow out of my being.  Personal implementation demands that I acknowledge two very real circumstances, both of which are painful: First, losing Linda is not a matter of if, but when. Secondly, my journal notations recorded six days — “I am going to bed with the assurance that God is with me; I shall survive, thrive, and fulfill the remaining purposes God has for life!” — connotes that walking victoriously through the long goodbye with my precious wife is training for a ministry that is yet unfolding. Living in the present while planning for the future is pushing me out of my comfort zone and demands that several truths be acknowledged:

• I must always remember that the second coming of Jesus Christ is near; however, until that time comes, a downtrodden attitude or harsh behavior will be of no value to Linda, me, or anyone that I seek to inspire!

• Anxiety is not only futile, it is debilitating; conversely, thanksgiving unto God is a powerful antidote for emotional instability, fear and despair. Therefore, all of my prayers must be accompanied by thanksgiving unto God for what he has done in the past, is doing in the present, and will do in the future.

• Obedience to God yields powerful dividends. The peace of God is not dependent on my circumstances. Rather, it consistently enables me to reproduce the life of Christ, regardless of loss, hardship or pain.

• The journey that Linda and I have been on for the past eighteen years caught us both off guard; however, while her mental capabilities were still largely intact, she and I adopted God’s promise to Jeremiah, who was also facing great uncertainty, as our very own:

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29: 11 NIV).