Healing for the Brokenhearted

I attend a very large church with about a dozen pastors assigned to various groups or programs. Late yesterday we got the news that one of our pastors "passed on to glory", as my Grandma would say. It was a shock. He was 5 years younger that me, with a wife and 3 children. His youngest and mine are the same age. Pastor Sterling was also the one who baptized my younger child just a few years ago. 

I have never been involved directly with his ministry, but I did participate in an online Bible study with his wife a few years ago. She was a great teacher and motivational person. They had a strong union, with Danielle and Sterling celebrating their 25th Anniversary last summer. 

Pastor Jeff gave a sermon today entitled "When There Are No Words". He was correct. The kind of news we got yesterday leaves a person with a multitude of thoughts and nothing to say. It hurts. It makes our everyday concerns seem trivial. Life is not about stuff or work or status. It's about people and Jesus, and pointing people to Jesus. 

Luke 4:18-19 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the  captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."