Jesus Christ is Lord: A message from my two aunts, JoAnn and Mary.

Chapter 24 – A message from my two aunts, JoAnn and Mary.

On December 15, 2024, my aunt JoAnn, whom I dearly love, shared a post. JoAnn is now the one remaining sibling from a family of six sisters and one brother. Aunt JoAnn shared the following post on our family’s Facebook Messenger page about her sister Mary:

“One year ago today, she went home to be with all the rest of our family, and if you want to know what she thought about, go to her (web) site and read her posts. Miss you Mary!”

I took aunt JoAnn’s advice and read some of Mary’s posts from her Facebook page. At this time in her life, Mary was in Ill health, and was deeply pondering life! The two posts I’m sharing here particularly touched my heart. I hope that they will mean a lot to you as well!

• The first one tells us clearly that she was, and is, a believer in the Jesus Christ, and that she had made Him Lord of her life!
• The second one caused me to reflect on my life as I am less than ten months from moving into my decade of the 80’s. Oh My! … Where has the time gone?

Post number one from Mary:

“I am declaring my faith publicly. My name is Mary Reichelt, and I am a grateful believer in The Lord Jesus Christ. I love The Lord Jesus Christ, despite the fact that I am human and I fail Him a lot of times. I believe that The Lord Jesus Christ is the son of God, that He was crucified on the cross where He died for my sins, and that He rose again on the 3rd day according to Scripture to give me salvation. He loves me dearly, and forgives my sins. His word (The New Testament of The Holy Bible) says, if I deny Him before men, He will deny me before His Father in Heaven. This is a challenge. So, if you love Jesus and you’re not ashamed of His Lordship, just replace my name with yours and make this your status update.”
“Can I get an Amen for being a Believer and a follower of The Lord Jesus Christ? Blessed is he who believes but cannot see!!”

Post number two: (Mary revealed her thoughts prior to sharing the article itself.)
“This is just a beautifully written piece; and so true. Take a couple of minutes to read it. You’ll be glad you did. This article is so befitting for all of us… take time to ponder… the last statement cannot be refuted!”
(I believe she typed the following in capitals and larger letters for emphasis.) “I FIRST STARTED READING THIS EMAIL AND WAS READING FAST UNTIL I REACHED THE THIRD SENTENCE. I STOPPED THEN AND STARTED OVER, READING SLOWER, AND THINKING ABOUT EVERY WORD… IT MAKES YOU STOP AND THINK. So, please READ SLOWLY!”

AND THEN IT IS WINTER

You know time has a way of moving quickly and catching you unaware of the passing years. It seems like yesterday that I was young, just married, and embarking on my new life with my mate. Yet in a way, it seems like eons ago, and I wonder where all those years went.

I know that I lived them all. I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams. But here it is… the winter of my life, and it catches me by surprise… How did I get here so fast? Where did the years go and where did my youth go? I remember well seeing older people through the years and thinking that those “older people” were years away from me and that winter was so far off that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.

But here it is…my friends are retired and getting grey… they move slower and I see an older person in myself now. Some are in better and some worse shape than me… but, I see the great change… Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant…but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks that we used to see and never thought we’d be.

Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day! And taking a nap is not a treat anymore… it’s mandatory! Cause if I don’t on my own free will… I just fall asleep where I sit!

And so… now I enter this new season of my life unprepared for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!! But at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I’m not sure how long it will last… this I know, that when it’s over on this earth… it’s over. A new adventure will begin!

Yes, I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn’t done… things I should have done, but indeed, there are also many things I’m happy to have done. It’s all in a lifetime. So, if you’re not in your winter yet… let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think. So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life, please do it quickly! Don’t put things off too long!! Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can TODAY, as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not!

You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life… so, LIVE FOR TODAY and say all the things that you want your loved ones to remember… and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things that you have done for them in all the years past!!

“Life” is a GIFT to you. The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after. Make it a fantastic one.

Remember:

• It is Health that is real Wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
• Your kids are becoming you… but your grandchildren are perfect!
• Going out is good… coming home is even better!
• You forget names… but it’s OK, because other people forgot they even knew you!!!
• You realize you’re never going to be really good at anything…. especially golf.
• The things you used to care to do, you no longer care to do, but you really do care that you don’t care to do them anymore.
• You sleep better on a lounge chair with the TV blaring than in bed. It’s called “pre-sleep.”
• You miss the days when everything worked with just an “ON” and “OFF” switch.
• You tend to use more 4 letter words … “What?”…  “When?”…???
• Now that you can afford expensive jewelry, it’s not safe to wear it anywhere.
• You notice everything they sell in stores is “sleeveless!”
• What used to be freckles are now liver spots.
• Everybody whispers.
• You have 3 sizes of clothes in your closet…. 2 of which you will never wear.
• But “Old” is good in some things: Old Songs, Old movies …And best of all, our dear …
  OLD FRIENDS!!

Stay well, “OLD FRIEND!”

 
I miss you Aunt Mary!
Mike