“God Be with You Till We Meet Again," ELW 536
Devotion
God be with you till we meet again;
by good counsels guide, uphold you,
with a shepherd's care enfold you;
God be with you till we meet again.
Till we meet, (till we meet,)
till we meet, (till we meet again,)
till we meet at Jesus' feet; (till we meet,)
till we meet, (till we meet,)
till we meet, (till we meet again.)
God be with you till we meet again.
God be with you till we meet again;
holy wings securely hide you,
daily manna still provide you;
God be with you till we meet again.
God be with you till we meet again;
when life's perils thick confound you,
put unfailing arms around you;
God be with you till we meet again.
He was my friend. A well-known radio personality, he had fallen victim to A.L.S. or Lou Gehrig's disease. During the year of my internship, he warmly welcomed into his home our small-group Bible study on Job using Gerhard E. Frost's wonderful book, "The Color of the Night." He could relate. Five years later, I returned for a church anniversary. I was shocked to learn that he was still alive living at a nursing home. I had to see him right away. His body was gone, but his spirit was not. He lay in bed completely paralyzed, not able to move a single muscle. He read daily by having someone turn the pages when he blinked. We had a long deep talk. Painfully, it came time to leave. I shared a prayer and blessing. Knowing it was the last time I would ever see him, not knowing how to bring things to a close, crying as I touched him, I finally stammered lamely, "Well, I guess this it. Goodbye." His eyes stared at me and he said,"Dave, you know better than that! We're Christians. Until we meet again…." Until we meet at Jesus’ feet, my friend.
Prayer
Lord God, bless me today with a living hope and faith to believe and trust in your promise until that day when we all meet again. Amen.