MILE 68: EVELYN L.
Occasionally a woman comes along in life that is a real jewel…someone to be desired, treasured, and to be honored. Someone that is beauty, and is able to show that beauty or to reflect the beauty of others is just like a prized jewel of great worth.
Evelyn Lantz was that type of person. She was a beautiful person whose spirit shone bright in the face of adversity, and whose spirit reflected the love of a Heavenly Father. Even as her body, or the setting that her stone was in, or as the Apostle Paul called it…this earthly tent that we temporarily abide in…even as her body began to suffer the effects of disease, Evelyn’s true spirit shined brightly. As you know, there are many types of costume or cheap jewelry that one can buy. They may glitter and look pretty for a while, and sometimes it may be difficult to tell the real thing from the fake. But after a period of time, most of the cheap jewelry will begin to fade and lose it luster. And if there is a question or doubt as to the authenticity of a jewel, a trained jeweler can put the stone under a bright light or under magnification, and trained eye can determine if it is real or not. I can’t help but think that the trained eye of the Master Jeweler, our Lord, saw a stone of great wealth in the life of Evelyn Lantz. He saw that the setting that this precious stone was in was deteriorating and was no longer useful, but the jewel itself, and the way that it had been cut was so beautiful to behold that He wanted to keep it and add it to His personal collection. Perhaps when the Lord looked at this jewel under a bright light and under magnification, He saw how it had been cut. Some cuts may have been made by the hardness of the difficulties in life that had been overcome. On the other hand, there were some cuts that were made by the joys and pleasures of life that can never be erased…joys such as marriage, a child, family, and friends. Each of these cuts was permanent, and made the stone glimmer and sparkle ever more…making it a stone of the highest beauty and wealth. A priceless stone of this quality will last forever. And so it is with Evelyn Lantz. Her soul will remain forever a precious jewel of great worth. All of our settings or bodies will one day tarnish or fade away and will no longer be useful. But God designed us so that our souls will last forever, and He wants us to spend that eternity with Him. That is why He sent His own Son for us. That Evelyn died just a few days from Easter Sunday is so meaningful to those who are believers. We know that even as the physical body of Christ suffered horribly and then died on a cross…yet He arose from the dead. And He promises that if we believe in him, we too shall live with Him when this earthly life is over. In John 11:25, Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me even though they may die, shall live again. For whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this,” Jesus asked? Evelyn Lantz believed it. In the face of adversity she believed it. Even in the face of disease and death itself, she believed it. And because she believed it, there is now a most precious, beautiful jewel sparkling in Heaven. See how it glitters and reflects the light of our Heavenly Father? It’s just made Heaven a little brighter, as she made our lives brighter while she was in our presence. 1/21/36 to 4/2/04 Funeral Transcript |