Yup...

Hey, can I get some more ppl commenting on my music article? Thanks...

Oh, and here's what I read at my grandmother's funeral...

In the last couple of days when I have been asked on which side my grandmother passed away, I have said "my mom's stepmom." In response the reaction has been, "Oh, so she really wasn't your grandmother." But Grandma Pearl has been nothing less than that to me and my siblings. She loved us with hugs, kisses, and care so that not until I was older did I realize she wasn't genetically related.

I remember how she'd sit in the comfy chair watching us play and just enjoying us. Every time we'd visit she always made sure there was cookies and juice, and once in a while her special deviled eggs which she knew I appreciated so much.

Staying overnight she took me on walks and talked to me the way grandmothers should. The thing I remember most about Grandma Pearl, though, is her faith. Grandma Pearl's faith was genuine, and the Lord was certainly with her and she in Him. Grandma Pearl's "good deeds" as some would say were not simply because she was a good person, but because Christ was her Lord and all she did was to glorify Him.

If she was here today, I'm sure she would be the first to say with the Apostle Paul: "15The saying is(A) trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus(B) came into the world to save sinners,(C) of whom I am the foremost. 16But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life."

She, herself would say that it is only God's grace that made her the person she was, and I thank God that He worked in her. She is an example to all of us of God's goodness in one person's life. God showed us His mercy and His goodness through this woman of faith and steadfast conviction.

If Grandma Pearl could say one last thing to us all, I believe she would quote two passages with which she was very familiar...

" 1For everything there is a season, and(A) a time for every matter under heaven:
2a time to be born, and a time to(B) die;a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; 3a time to kill, and a time to heal;a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4a time to(C) weep, and a time to laugh;a time to mourn, and a time to(D) dance;"

It is ok to grieve that this loved one is no longer with us, but know that this was her declaration:

Yes, and I will rejoice, 19for I know that(AF) with(AG) the help of(AH) the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, 20.it is my eager expectation and hope(AI) that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full(AJ) courage, now as always, Christ(AK) will be honored in my body,(AL) whether by life or by death. 21For to me(AM) to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23(AN) I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is(AO) to depart and(AP) be with Christ, for that is far better.