Our God Who Wipes Tears

“He will swallow up death for all time, and the Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces….” (Isaiah 25:8, NASB95)

“and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4, NASB95)

Today my post is a bit different. It is a tribute written to my sister who we learned of her passing yesterday and was directed to those who came together as her friends and acquaintances and who were connected to her through social media.

Marguerite Francis (Burgess) Deason

The interesting thing about social media is it brings together people in ways that they otherwise never would have met. As with many of you on my sister's friends list I do not know you and you do not know me. Others, while related, our paths have been largely divergent because of the places we have chosen to live and the faith we have followed. But this week there are many visiting her page to share how Margy has impacted their lives and how deeply she is being missed.

I have three wonderful sisters. Margy is the middle one of them, and by many regards lived the hardest life of all. Though she once married, she has lived her life unmarried. The children she has loved have been those of other parents, including my own and her other nieces and nephews, especially Clovis who she spent so much of her life around. But she loved more than just these, she loved children everywhere, including many who were in need through the foster care system and those whose parents needed to work and they entrusted their precious little ones to her for child care. Margy loved people and she would give what little she had to give it back to them.

At the same time, Margy also lived with great pain. She lived with the pain of loneliness and the pain of illness. Struggling with Valley Fever took a great toll on her physically and it limited her in so many ways. But the one thing it did not do was take away her love and her heart for others.

I am so thankful for my sister Kathy who was the right hand to her left, as the two of them tackled many challenges together. And I am also hurting for Kathy and Bill and Clovis and the rest of our family as we shed tears at her passing.

I am thankful for those of you who were her friends and her support over these years, and I pray for you that her impact on you will endure.

But most of all, I am thankful to my God in whom she placed her trust as a young lady in Port Hueneme, California and in whom I have every confidence did not let her loose from His hands and who has graciously and compassionately relieved her of all of the pain to bring her into His loving presence with a true and enduring fullness of joy.

The picture is of a daisy. A daisy is a simple flower that blooms and brings great joy to those who take time to look upon it. I am not a botanist, and I do not know with any certainty which form I have chosen in this picture, one thing I do know is that one form of a daisy is a Marguerite. My sister bloomed for a season and brought much joy. 

As I looked at this singular flower I was also struck by the moisture on its petals. In that I thought of the sorrow that came with the joy, the tears that are being shed, and the great refreshment Margy now knows.

I love you Margy.

Your brat of all brats brother, Joe

“You are my God, and I give thanks to You; You are my God, I extol You. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting.” (Psalm 118:28–29, NASB95)