Family Day

Bible Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

“I don’t like camp! Don’t go! Stay with me!” Four-year-old Fay sobbed as she clung to her big brother.

“I won’t be gone forever,” Ford told her. “I’m just going for a week.”

“No! I want you to stay home and play with me,” the little girl insisted.

Gently, Mom loosened Fay’s hands from Ford’s leg and picked her up. “Next Saturday we’re all going to camp for Family Day,” she said. “Ford will do fun things with you there.”

“Can we have marshmallows?” Fay asked.

Dad laughed. “Yes, we can have marshmallows,” he said. “Get your things, Ford. We’d better get going.”

As the door closed behind them, Dad and Ford heard the little girl’s voice. “How long is it till Family Day?”

Each morning that week Fay asked if it was time to go to camp. When the day finally arrived, she had a wonderful time. “I like camp after all!” she said.

A few days after camp ended, Ford and Fay’s parents got a call they had been dreading. As Mom hung up the phone, her eyes were wet with tears. “Poppy is gone,” she said.

It took a minute for Ford to grasp that his grandfather had died. Dad put his arms around him. “We’ll miss Poppy, and we’ll grieve his death,” Dad said, “but remember—it’s not forever.”

“What do you mean?” Ford asked, wiping his eyes. “Death is forever.”

“No, it’s not!” Dad said. “Because Jesus died for us and rose from the dead, death is not forever. When He returns, we will all rise again, and Christians will spend eternity with Him in the new heavens and new earth. In the meantime, Poppy is in heaven with Jesus. Someday we’ll see Jesus face-to-face, either when we die or when He returns—whichever comes first—and Poppy will be there too.”

Fay tugged at her father’s arm, wanting him to pick her up. “Don’t cry, Ford,” she said. “We’ll see Poppy when we go to Family Day in heaven. He can show you all the fun things—like you showed me at camp.” As she snuggled in her father’s arms, she asked, “Will there be marshmallows in heaven?”

Through their tears, the family laughed together. – Barbara J. Westberg

How About You?

Has someone you love gone to heaven to be with Jesus? It’s sad to lose a friend or family member, but remember that, for Christians, the separation is not forever. A wonderful “Family Day” is coming when all God’s children will be united, and you will be with your loved one again. Best of all, you will be together with Jesus. What a wonderful day that will be!

Today’s Key Verse: 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18 We shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Today’s Key Thought:

Christians will meet again