July 24, 2004
The Delight of My Eyes
The word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, behold, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke; yet you shall not mourn or weep, nor shall your tears run down. Sigh, but not aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men." So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died. And on the next morning I did as I was commanded.
This weekend marks the one year anniversary of Susan's last weekend in this life. Flowers have been prepared in her memory for display in tomorrow's church service, and coincidentally, her grandson Luke will be baptized at that service. How pleased she would be.
For me the passage above from Ezekiel 24 says it perfectly. She was the delight of my eyes, as the picture above attests. In the case of Ezekiel and the people of Israel with Jerusalem under siege, the Lord went to great lengths in the prophet's life to prove a point: He took his wife. I can't claim something as dramatic in my life, yet the effect is the same: I grieve every day as I long for the delight of my eyes even as the prophet must have done.
Ezekiel went on with his life, as commanded by the Lord. In this year of Jubilee I do too, not knowing where the path may lead. She was always sure: "His plan is perfect." And so it is.
Posted by John Dishman at July 24, 2004 12:08 PM