Throughout this journey, I shared things about Jasmine with those who prayed for her. I shared about her spiritual transformation as she grew in her faith . . . her outgrowth of love for God and for people. Even as her husband who knew her most intimately, my words are inadequate to fully convey who she truly was. Jasmine was active on Facebook. It was her conduit to share her spiritual insights, reactions to the world in which we live, and private messages. I came across her post from June 15, 2021, which clearly revealed the overflowing love in her heart for our family—our children, their spouses, and our five granddaughters—a love that was transcended only by God’s love for us. Here it is in her own words:
Rhapsody, Louis, Seizen, Mandy, and Leila, Emily, Lotus, Lori Joy, and Kelly Elyse, I love you all so, so much. I don’t know how it’s possible for my mind, body, heart, and soul to contain that much love. Then I thought about God’s love for all of us and the world and realized how much even the amount and degree of love I feel for you, pales . . . cannot even begin to compare . . . and this stanza of a hymn came to my mind . . . and I can’t begin to wrap my head around it . . . and I am humbled and in awe, and am so grateful to be able to experience and give a taste of what that’s like to you.
Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky.
From our human perspective, Jasmine’s life was cut short, but in God’s sovereign plan, she lived out His purpose for her life, completely. The impact of her life will continue even though her life on earth has been fulfilled. She showed us all how our time on earth can make an eternal impact when we live a life in absolute surrender to God.
“Her heart of surrender left an imprint on the hearts of others.”
Stop and Consider: The final quote is the epitaph on her urn. It summarizes the eternal impact that she made with the time that she had. What will your epitaph be?
(Epilogue: Are You Prepared for Eternity?)
I have surrendered my will to Christ.
I need Him to use it.
I learned that through SWM