Herb Mulder

Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”  Lamentations 3:21- 23

It was an anniversary of sorts this past weekend. I wrote this several years ago, and thought I would share it.

My dad died early in the morning on May 11, 2015. It wasn’t in the news or on the front page of the paper. In the eyes of the world, my dad was not considered a great man nor did he accomplish anything to make him famous.  I know that my Dad had his faults just like I have mine, but he was my dad and I am his son. I belonged to him. I have said before, there is a connection between love and belonging. I know that my Dad loved his wife and children and he was loved by his wife and children, for no reason other than we belonged to each other. 

A couple of months before he passed away, I talked to Dad on the phone.  During our conversation, I told him that I was teaching Claire and Cai, Question and Answer 1 from the Heidelberg Catechism, “What is your only comfort?”  He responded by quoting the answer, “I am not my own, but belong body and soul, in life and death to my faithful savior Jesus Christ.”

My Facebook post on May 11 said in part, “I lost my Dad today.”  But the loss was mine.  There is a hole in my life now that he is gone. Without him there is something missing. It is a hole that brings me pain and grief.  For my family and I, there is a sense of great loss.

But, our grief is not for Dad but for our great but temporary loss of him.  Our loss is his great and eternal gain, for I believe “in the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.”

I said that I lost him but I know where he is.  My dad has always been a believer and his wife and all of his 8 children are people of strong faith in God.  Each of us knows that we belong to God through Christ.  We all know that Dad is enjoying the full beauty and glory of God, where all things have been restored and made new.  And now he is with his faithful Savior.

I concluded my Facebook post with, “In life and in death, he belonged to God. That is my comfort.  Love you Dad”

Ten years later, there is still a sense of loss, and during the past couple of years, I would have loved to talk to him and ask certain questions. But the pain of that loss is not quite so harsh anymore. There is a realization and acceptance of the “normal” part of life and death and greater realization that we enjoy our time together, but that is is not our final home or the end. There are seasons of life and time for mourning and rejoicing. I consider myself blessed to have had a faithful father that knew to whom he belonged, and who taught me that I too belong to our faithful savior.

Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love. Lamentations 3:32