So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

Philippians 2:17 & 18 But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

It is a bitter sweet experience to see the life of a fellow believer end. We mourn their passing. Our lives feel a sense of loss, a vacuum exists where they once stood in our lives. And at the same time, we rejoice at their victory over death. They stand in the presence of our Savior! In that fact we find the comfort to cope with the loss and to move forward with our lives.

I have lost friends and family to various causes. Death of a family member or friend takes its' toll. I struggle, for a time. If the friend is a non-believer, I think I feel a greater sense of loss. For I know the finality for them in their death. Whereas in the death, in this world, for a believer is not the end. It is only the beginning of the rest of the eternal life. The first loss stings more because it usually means the words and prayers for the one who died did not pan out in a change in their life to be a believer. Guilt is part of the equation. That nagging feeling of what more could I have done. What words should I have said. What strong statement of faith did I miss the opportunity to make. It bothers me. I pray alot about this. It is a growth area for me. But then when I compare that experience with the death of a fellow believer it is still a feeling of sadness over their being out of my life, for now. But a profound sense of joy in their real victory over death, spiritual death tempers the loss. I would much rather attend a memorial service for a fellow believer than a funeral for a nonbeliever. The summary statement for the believer is he lives on. For the nonbeliever is "That's all folks!" Each one can be sad, but for different reasons.

We at Grace Lutheran Pocatello Idaho will gather to celebrate the life of Reverend Manfred Berndt this coming Saturday at 3:00 PM. We are glad for his standing in the presence of our Savior and we rejoice with him.

Fair winds and following seas Manfred.

PRAYER: Almighty God, we thank You for the life and service of Your good and faithful servant Manfred Berndt. We look back at his life and see a faithful servant, a husband, a Father, and a friend. We are saddened by his death. And we rejoice at His victory. We are humbled at the gift of salvation through the sacrifice of You Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We cling to the promise of eternal life given freely to all believers. On this promise in You Word, we stake our faith. To You be all the glory in all that we do as a body of believers. Amen