Blessed Goodbyes

August 2011 seemed to be the month of goodbyes for me...I thought just how many ways can you say "goodbye", so what does one do in this age of technology to answer questions...I did what my six year old tells me to do quite often...I googled it!  My favorite one was Icelandic, "goodbye" in that language is "blessed". I love that! I'm gonna go with that!


There were four very special ladies I said goodbye to in August and "blessed" is what I pray for each of them daily. That God will bless them with smiles from Him every day!  I wasn't far into August, literally just a few hours until I had to say my first "blessed" for the month. I was leaving a hotel in Manila to head home after a sweet visit with a friend. God gave us a fantastic week together and I, for one, had dreaded the "goodbye" because the last one we had was ug.ly! I mean, the ugly cry! You know the one!  Well, funny thing, we had gone to see Captain America while I was there and in that movie there is a scene where two guys are telling each goodbye and they just did simple, quick hugs with a "goodbye, jerk!", "see ya, punk!" So yep! That is the route we took. It was easier than the last and I think God knew we both needed that kind of "blessed". 

The next "bye" came the very next week with another friend that had been in the states visiting for a while. We met at the local, favorite sandwich shop and had a sweet visit. She's one I've known for nearly 18 years, but strangely, just in the past few years have we grown closer...and I say strangely because of the fact she's a missionary to the Philippines!  Thank the Lord for technology where even friendships can grow!  Now we have sons the same age that consider each other best buddies, and trust me, though they only see each other every other year or so, once together, they can be fighting like brothers in no time!! A precious friend that I really got use to just having around town for a while...now I was saying "blessed".

This led me up to the third week of August and I was staring down the barrel of yet another goodbye to be said.  This one to a young lady whom I've known pretty much her entire life. I remember her toddler days when the only people that could understand what she said was her mother and I. We had lots of giggles together over the years. We'd hug each other real tight and whisper "Love hurts". She was the cutest little thing and I always wanted a little girl just like her and now that I've watched her grow, and even had the blessing of discipling her in her senior year of high school, well I'd love for my daughter to grow up just like her!  As we met late one night for dessert and coffee, just two nights before she left to go to the other side of the world for a year of college, we hugged beneath the flickering, bug-filled lights in the parking lot and whispered "love hurts"....boy does it! Though let me add, we didn't cry, we decided we both just had something fly into our eyes. Dang wind! "Blessed!"


And finally we made it to the last week of August and I had to tell a lady that I adore "blessed" because her husband (though I'm still not quite certain what he's thinking!) is moving her two hours away. We know its not the other side of the world, yet for one that I'm use to seeing and hugging every week, enjoy watching her play the piano every week at our church, and is my friend and mentor....well, two hours is still two hours!  She's taught me many things about life, church, missions, being a pastor's wife and being real. One memory I'll never forget of her, is being in a van in Manila and pulling away from a hotel while her daughter stood outside of the hotel (her daughter is a missionary to the Philippines). We didn't say anything really, I just held her hand and we both just cried. Yes, she's taught me many things, but she has definitely taught me how to say "goodbye"....with His strength and the hope we have in Him that if we never see each other again on this earth, we will be together for all of eternity!


Truly this life is just a vapor, and yes, I do believe the Icelandic way of saying "goodbye" is the best way to sum it up, "Blessed!"  Yes, I've been blessed by these four ladies and I pray God's richest blessings on them and their amazing lives. His grace has been sufficient for us. His faithfulness has sustained us. His comfort has held us. His mercies have filled us. And His love allows us to leave each other BLESSED in our goodbyes!

"You give and take away

You give and take away

My heart will choose to say

Lord, blessed be Your name"