True Love Never Fails

I Corinthians 13:7-8: "Love always perseveres. True Love never fails."

There are few instances in our lives, when someone shares a word of blessing with us that is so incredibly impacting and inspiring to us, that we know that we will carry those words with us for the remainder of our lives.

One such event happened with me just last evening. The phone conversation with my father started as any normal conversation that I would have with him, when our discussion gravitated to the memory of my mother, who passed away 10 years before. I have fond memories of the beautiful marriage that my mother and father had. I remember as a young boy watching my mother and father flirt with each other with hugs and kisses in the kitchen. Whereas I thought at the time that such displays of affection were "yucky," I remember that they were genuine. My mother and father truly loved each other, and they selflessly ministered to each other . . . putting the needs of each other before themselves. There never was a doubt that my parents were committed to each other, for their relationship (though not perfect) was filled with evidences of love and faithfulness. They always went above and beyond the expected to bless each other and to do whatever they could to be a source of enrichment for their mate.

When my mother, who was the bastion of health and fitness, was diagnosed with terminal cancer at 54, it truly was a devastating time for the entire family. Still, my dad loved his bride, and he cared for her at home. I remember my dad carrying her to the restroom, when she was too weak to walk, and I remember him changing her diaper when she became bedridden. As she lay continually in bed, my dad would not permit his lovely bride to develop bed sores, so he made it a regular regimen to apply lotion to her body. He too would lie in bed and hold his wife, even when she was lapsing into a comatose state.

Just before my mother's passing, I remember visiting one weekend and being awakened in the middle of the night by my dad, who told me that my mother had opened her eyes. Ten years later as I reflect upon my dad's calling me, I suspect that he was sitting next to her, just looking at his bride and tenderly loving her, even though she was unresponsive to his presence.

Just one day after our middle-of-the-night encounter with my mother, my mother died. For three months my father displayed such profound love to his wife of 35 years. But the thing that so blessed me last evening in my phone conversation was finding out "the rest of the story." When the funeral home staff arrived at the home, they invited my father to step outside the room in order that they might prepare the body for transport. This my father would not have. He loved his bride, and he wanted to carry his love in his arms to the vehicle. The funeral home staff were shocked. They had never seen such a display of love before. As he carried his wife out of the bedroom, down the hallway, and across the threshold for the last time, my father was loving and honoring his wife. I can just see him showering his bride with kisses as he held her close to him one last time. And as he lay his bride in the vehicle, he kissed her good-bye, sharing with her that he looked forward to the day of their reunion before our blessed Lord. This folks is love at its finest!

Even as I share this story, I can't hold back the tears. There is not much more that can be shared, other than to say "True Love Never Fails!"