As Mary and Martha said, when Jesus came after the burial of their brother Lazarus, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." We do know that - but our problem is with the birthdays, the holidays, the vacations that will now be changed by his absence.

We like things to stay the same. I often wish my kids could all be still living at home. I even wish I could have one of the same old arguments I always had with them. But our lives change. The people come and go like actors on a stage who enter, play a part in our life, and then exit. But although their part may be long or short, and they may have many lines or few, they each make the difference for us that God has planned.

Perhaps it is better to turn this around. We ourselves are playing only a short part. We have opportunity today on our piece of the stage to point to the main character, Jesus. We may never interact with these other characters again, or in such a time of opportunity.

My friend will gather with his family today. His parent's neighbors, old co-workers, and fellow church members will come to meet the grown-up children and grandchildren. By their trust in Jesus they will show that Jesus is worth worshiping - just as Job's worship brought glory to God. He proved that God was not just worshiped when he gave gifts.

He and his family will grieve. They had a wonderful gift from their heavenly Father... for a time. But now it is time for them to be that same gift to one another. Now it is their turn to show the love that their father/grandfather showed to them - the love of Jesus.