God is good.....all the time

Yesterday, I was prepared for a somber day.  My husband and I attended the memorial service of one of his co-worker's dad.  Keith is actually more than a co-worker.  He is often Mark's partner on a daily basis and has become a dear friend. 

As we entered the church for the service, my husband's co-workers sat as a group and the only seats left with the group were the seats on the front row and that is where we were directed.  The front row turned out to be the best seat in the house.

The flyer in his memory read "God is good all the time....All the time God is good."  While I thought it was neat, I really thought it was just part of the flyer. I thought it was from some "memorial service template" that is often used in these type of services.   What I came to realize, and everyone else did too, was that this was Mr. Wilkie's mantra. 

This was his theme, his belief, his proclaimation.  Although we did not know him personally, by the time we left the memorial service, I wished I had known him.  What a life he lived.   They began the service with that statement and invited the congregation to participate so that everytime the pastor said "God is good" the congregation would say "All the time" and when he said "All the time" the congregation would say "God is good"

It felt good because it took me back to a time when we used to do that in church years ago. So many times, we forget how good God is and this man lived it and believed it daily!  We were told of Mr. Wilkie's faithfulness in his church, in his home, with his children and grandchildren.  What a rock.  What a testimony. 

We heard a friend tell of his faithfulness and how he and his wife made countless visits to hospitals to visit congregation members.  When asked how many had received a visit from him and his wife at a hospital, at least half of the congration raised their hands.  This is in a period of 30 years or so.  He was extremely active in his church and a great part of his son's lives. 

The idea of the service was that regardless of the times, regardless of the circumstances, regardless of the prognosis, Mr. Wilkie truly believed that God is good all the time!

We ended the service with a song from my childhood and it was all too familiar.  The service ended upbeat and with smiling faces as we sang:

God is good, all the time,
He put a song of praise in this heart of mine,
God is good all the time
Through the darkest night
His light will shine,
God is good....God is good....all the time!

I walked into that church expecting a somber, sad service.  Instead, I walked into a celebration of a man who had lived his life to the fullest believing daily, regardless of the circumstances that "God is good....all the time."

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man that takes refuge in him.  Psalms 34:8

In Memory of Mr. Gayle Wilkie
 1933-2012