consistency, my prayer.

Last week another of "my" widow ladies went to be with the Lord. Ninety-four years old, and faithful to the Lord, His people, His church and her family all those years.  Not perfect,  failures that I am aware of, but faithful and true as best she could.

Last I saw her was almost a year and a half ago. And though it had been several years and she had some age related dementia, her family assured me that she remembered me. And she seemed to when I had the opportunity to greet her, though I likely wouldn't have recognized her if she hadn't been with her family. It always amazes me when I am remembered by those who have forgotten others.

Anyway.

She passed away a couple weeks ago,  and her memorial service was last weekend. Living far and being too busy for my own good made it impossible for me to attend the service in person.  But thanks to the chaos of 2020 and the capability of livestreaming via Facebook,  I was able to be there virtually. 

I was blessed to hear her children and others she had influenced in their youth, speak in ways that brought not only honor to her but also glory to our Lord and Savior.  What struck most was the common thread of consistency that was mentioned by every one who spoke of her. They all said they knew she was available,  that she loved them, she was faithful to the Lord, her family and the church.  I knew this to be true.  She was a member of that church when we started there, I was 4 months old.  And she was still there active as she could be almost 50 years later.  The ripple effect of her life was so obvious.  

I found myself praying over and over throughout the service "Lord, this is how I want to finish. I want my end to bring You this kind of glory. I want CONSISTENCY to be a word that describes me. I want to have this kind of impact on the lives around me. I want my family (bio and church) to be unwaveringly convinced of my love for them and Christ."

I want to follow Christ in such a way. Real. Loving. Faithful. Consistent.