Remembering Cecil
Do you have a relative that you feel like you have some sort of unspoken special bond with? The older I get I feel more and more endearment for all my family. I have learned to treasure them more than ever.
I had one particular uncle that somehow I felt like we just had a special bond. My uncle Cecil was a protector. I remember once I was attacked by a dog when I was just a little girl and he jumped to my rescue. I remember a time my brother had wandered off at a fireworks show and my uncle grabbed him up just before an explosion made a huge hole right were my brother had been standing.
I am sure his own children could tell of multiple times he protected them. As great of an uncle as he was to us, and as great of a brother he was to mama, I know he was an even better father. My cousin Darrell said it best when he said that there hasn't been enough paper printed to be able to write down all there is good to say about his daddy.
Cecil didn't have the easiest childhood I am sure as he grew up the youngest boy with five older brothers. Thankfully he had two nurturing sisters. They said when he was a boy if he wasn't hunting, he wasn't happy. He was known for cutting school and making the woods his classroom and squirrel hunting his assignment. He didn't hold doctorates or degrees from universities but he certainly could do more than any average guy would ever dream.
Have a plumbing or an electrical problem? Call Cecil. If you wanted to build an addition on your house or your car was broke down, call Cecil. Masonry work? Vinyl Siding? Roofing? Well, just call Cecil. That was our families mantra for years when we needed things done or things fixed. He practically built the home I grew up in and the home I live in now has his finger prints on it. When he got sick with the nasty cancer word, not only were we sad that he was sick and wanted him better but we were honestly without the best handyman in these parts.
One of the best things about Cecil was his sense of humor. Something he didn't loose even in times of him suffering greatly from a terrible illness. I saw him on his birthday last month as he lay in the hospital but he still could muster a smile and a laugh.
Cecil wasn't one to talk religion much and when I first got saved I felt that he was my prayer project. I felt drawn to his sweet and gentle spirit and knew he had a lot to offer in the kingdom of God. In those early days of my salvation I thought that meant that he was called to preach and I told him many times that he was gonna be a preacher one day. He would laugh so hard.
Cecil never stood in a pulpit to my knowledge, but he preached through his life what some church folks would do well to follow. He loved people. He helped people. He didn't care what color you were or if you were rich or poor. He didn't do things for people looking for something in return. He was just good hearted. He wasn't a Bible thumper but he brought joy with him wherever he went.
He endured a long hard fight with that ugly cancer. I think because he was a protector he fought even harder. He wanted to make sure his beloved, Martha (my sweet aunt that lovingly cared for him like a king) was going to be ok. He wanted his children to be ok. He wanted his grandchildren to be ok. His suffering ended early this past Saturday morning and Cecil now has taken on a body that is not wracked with pain. He has been reunited with his mama and daddy and a couple of his brothers. I used to joke with him about dancing a jig. I imagine he has danced a jig or two already. I also imagine that he is now watching over his precious family that he loved so much. While we are grieving the loss of our family member a scripture from Psalms struck me. It says, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints" Psalm 116:15
God redeems the souls of His saints. All their days are planned God says in Psalms 139:16. He saw Cecil before he was born, and every day of his life was ordained and recorded in His book.
Earlier in Psalm 139:5 the palmist David writes, “You, O LORD go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too great for me to understand! I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there.”
Yes, today there is rejoicing in heaven, while there is sorrow on earth in the death of a loved one. But in the rejoicing and sorrow, God is near to all. In fact, God promises a blessing to His saints, whose earthly father has passed on to the next life. In Pslams 68:5, the blessing reads God will be “a father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His Holy Dwelling.”
So precious in the eyes of the LORD is the passing of His saints that He even blesses those who are left behind.
So Martha, Doodlebug, Tina, Teresa, Darrell and Kevin and all you sweet grandbabies take heart that your protector is still with you. Just like you described the sweet fragrance of flowers entering the room when Cecil took his final breath, that was the sweet spirit of an all mighty God bringing his precious saint home.
To my sweet mama that is grieving the loss of her brother and my other uncles and cousins that feel the void and loss, you will see Cecil again. I expect he will introduce you to some friends in his new home and show you to the dance floor where you too will dance a jig. I'm gonna dance two and I don't mean also. I'm gonna dance a jig or two.
May you all be blessed and the God of All Comfort, comfort you and give you peace this day and in the days ahead.
