perspective

Death has a way of putting life in perspective. What is important? What is necessary? What is true? You see things in a new light. Things that once seemed important are suddenly non-essential. Things that you took for granted are now cherished. Things that you always accepted as truth are being held up to the light. I guess in that way, death and grief are equalizers; it doesn't matter how much money you have or don't have and your material possessions bring no comfort. I've never really understood the verse in I Corinthians 13, where Paul says, "And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love." It sounds like this sentence should come after some explanation of other things falling away or why other things are insufficient. Even though I've never understood its placement, I've always loved it and I would think it rings very true for most people. I feel like that "missing part" before verse 13 is where I've been, and maybe where you've been too. The place that when you look back on it you say, "All that is true is what has brought me through this; all that is essential is what remains. Faith, hope, and love."

Grace and peace.