Last Wednesday, when I would normally be putting the finishing touches on my weekly post, I was instead participating in a memorial service for Harold Shehan, a man I have grown to love and admire over the last three years.  In the clubhouse of the country club where he lived for much of his later years, we joyfully and mournfully heard words of encouragement, remembrance, listened to and sang praises to Harold’s Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  It was a blessed time and one that touched the hearts of all who attended.

Since Harold was a veteran who served in the Army Air Corps during World War II, he was also remembered with military honors by the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post.  He was proud of his service, and so we adjourned from the worship service to the terrace of the clubhouse for the traditional twenty-one-gun salute and Christian litany shared by the Army chaplain.

As we walked into the afternoon air, I could feel the heaviness of the weather as it seemed to close in on us, dark clouds circling and even a drop or two of mist coalescing into rain.  But as we watched and listened, an almost eerie light began to glow around us.  I glanced up to see the clouds, threatening as they were and completely surrounding the mountain-top on which the club-house stood.  Above us, however, the sun shone, veiled slightly by high, hazy overcast.  It was an almost other-worldly light, and it remained just this way throughout the salute, the litany, and the flag-folding ceremony.  Other people noticed, too, and we afterward counted it as an unusual blessing.  Shortly after the ceremony was completed, as we returned to the shelter of the building, the clouds closed in and a steady rainfall commenced.

It was as if the Lord chose to grant us mercy to finish what we started – honoring him and the man who had walked a life of faith in him in a gentle yet unmistakable way.

I was only a little surprised.  I know that God is clearly impartial, offering blessings to everyone, whether or not they acknowledge him.  Fittingly, Jesus used weather as an example as spoke about his Father’s freely bestowed blessings.  He reminded his listeners that God “…causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (see Matthew 5:43-48).  Jesus’ words in this passage speak to our tendency to draw lines in the sand and treat with favor only those we like and who like us.  He encouraged his listeners to be like his heavenly Father, even to the point of loving their enemies.

Interestingly, Harold had lived a life that exemplified just such behavior.  He treated everyone, whether he agreed with them or not, with respect and kindness.  Many things that are going on in our culture troubled him.  In spite of it, he called himself “the most blessed man you will ever meet.”  He had his opinions, most definitely, but his gentle confidence allowed others to be comfortable in his presence.  At almost 97 years of age, he was sharp and clear-thinking, and he had the wisdom and courage to live what he believed without prejudice toward others.

It seemed that the weather was provided to reflect Harold’s testimony – a shining light in a darkening world, touching everyone around him with kind-heartedness.  I like to think so.  Because it also reflects how I see God at work in much of the rest of our lives.

Rest in peace, Harold, my friend.  Enjoy your heavenly home.