Events of the recent past remind us of the precariousness of life. With the deaths of Ray Charles and Ronald Reagan we are reminded that no matter how much we are able to accomplish in life, each of us will face the end of our earthly journey.

Like me, you may have watched the events honoring the life of President Ronald Reagan. I caught glimpses of the week’s events, enough to help me understand the magnitude of the nation’s somber mood and respect for the man, regardless of political affiliation.

I was able, though, to watch the entire “sunset service” at his presidential library in California. There was something remarkable about the setting: the sun lowering in the west over the Pacific Ocean – shining brightly upon the faces of those present, the mountains serving as a frame. It seemed to me as surreal. I sensed “gentleness,” a “peacefulness” enveloping that place.

Prior to this final ceremony, the week of national mourning had been filled with homilies honoring the man and his leadership. The week had been filled with events that gave recognition to his public service and his once challenge to then President Gorbechev of the Soviet Union to “tear down this wall,” speaking of the Berlin Wall. There was the grand funeral service at the Washington National Cathedral. There was great pomp and circumstance to the week in keeping with our nation’s respect for the office of the presidency. I was so impressed with his wife Nancy’s strength and courage to share with the world her grief and deep sadness.

But of all the week’s mix of sadness and celebration, what I remember most vividly is that final service in California. More particularly, I remember watching Reagan’s three children walk to the lectern to share with the world their comments about their father. Former presidents of the United States had spoken previously during the week, but that palled in comparison to the words of Reagan’s children. Lady Thatcher of England had paid the highest honor and respect to this man, but that palled in comparison. I was reminded that Reagan did not always have the best of relationship with his three children, but they worked it through, they reconciled their relationships, and love had triumphed.

Their words about their father were warm and touching. Their words were laced with humor and tears. But in the words of all three, one could detect a common thread in their experience with their father: his unabashed Christian faith. Oldest son Michael said the greatest gift given him by his father was his witness to Jesus Christ. Daughter Patty shared her memory of his eulogizing words over a dead goldfish that spoke of a heavenly place of crystal blue waters where the fish would swim forever, wonderfully. Son Ron, Jr. was so eloquent in speaking of his father’s honesty and decency. He too spoke of his father’s witness of faith that carried him through life, concluding with words of trust, “He is home. He is free.”

I am convinced that for all the challenges that the Reagan family had faced, it had been the consistent faithful witness of father Ronald and mother Nancy that had carried them. It had been their faith in our Lord – seen and heard by their children – that has made all the difference.

Pastor Randy