In the sweet by and by… We shall meet on that beautiful shore
I sat outside room 16. The curtain was drawn. The sliding door was closed. I’d been called to come down and offer spiritual support, but I never went in the room. I started to but stopped when I heard the singing. More than 20 people crowded into the room. Their loved one was dying and would soon head home to hospice care. As they waited, they sang. In beautiful harmony, they sang. There was nothing I could add to the support the family was already providing one another, so I stayed outside. I listened, prayed, and reflected on the week.
I could still hear the screams from the day before. It was one of the worst traumas I’ve ever seen, and it culminated in a room a few doors away where I sat. It has been a hell of a week, and I felt the weight of it all. Emotionally, spiritually, and physically exhausted, I sat outside room 16 and listened. I listened and prayed.
In the sweet by and by… We shall meet on that beautiful shore
Beauty collided with pain. Harmony drowned out the dissonance. It was such a powerful reminder of the presence of God, even amid the terrible pain of life.
I walked down to the nurse station, just a few paces away.
“You have to hear this! I know you are busy. Trust me. When you get a second, go listen.”
God is not absent in my pain. God is not hiding when I’m searching. God is with me. The beauty, harmony, peace, protection, provision, guidance, and love of God remain. I’m learning to see it. I’m learning to sense it. I’m learning to listen for it.
In the sweet by and by… We shall meet on that beautiful shore.
It doesn’t really capture it well, but you can listen to a few seconds of them singing below. What a privilege it is to get to do what I do.