It can be hard for you to leave home for a long period of time, both hard on you and your family. Though you might have a nice meal together beforehand and then some special hugs and kisses at the airport, you still have to leave. It can be really tough, especially if you have children who are obviously hurting. You might manage to hold yourself together in their presence, but once you leave the tears may come. There is one thing that can make it okay: the parting is only temporary. You can be reunited.
Life's partings are tough, especially when someone we love slips into eternity. Death tears us up inside, and the grief seems almost unbearable. If you and your loved one belong to Jesus, then this is not the termination of your relationship. Only because of Jesus Christ, can this interruption be bearable.
God describes this hope for hard times in the Word of God in 1 Thessalonians 4:13: "We do not want you...to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope." It's a good thing that God didn't say "Believers don't grieve," because we do. We grieve, but have the hope of seeing that loved one again. The passage goes on to say in verse 16, "For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command...and the dead in Christ will rise first." That might be your dad, your brother, your grandparents, or maybe even some of your friends who have passed away.
The Bible goes on to say in verse 17, "After that, we who are still alive...will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever." Wow! When Jesus walked out of His grave, He conquered death for all those who would ever give their lives to Him. It doesn't mean your heart won't stop some day and the earth-suit called your body won't die. It means the real you - your soul - will go on forever in God's great heaven if you have a personal relationship with Him. The Bible says, "Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55).
You may be struggling with the loss of someone you love, and the pain is very real. Death was never meant to be part of our lives; sin resulted in death. Jesus died to pay the death penalty for our sin, and then on Easter morning, He beat the sin monster that had beaten every person who ever lived.
Because of Jesus, the very worst possible death for believers is an interruption of the relationship, never a termination. If you have never put your total trust in Jesus to be your own Savior from sin and death, don't risk another day without Him.
The day of your long trip, the pain and the tears are real. They are on a much deeper level when someone you love is leaving you for eternity. You can handle the leaving if you know that the separation is only an interruption and an awesome reunion is coming!