I witnessed a tender moment this morning. As we sang the choral refrain “my Savior, my Savior lives” in worship, I heard a father softly say behind me, “See? Mommy lives with Jesus, too.” His words of comfort to his children captivated me. After the service, I learned that his wife of 15 years had passed away just three weeks before after a long battle with cancer, leaving behind a grieving husband, 11-year old son, and 9-year old daughter. In that moment of worship, they were knit together by the most profound promise of Jesus: “Whoever lives and believes in me will never die.”

Earlier this week I had the honor to attend a funeral of another woman who also led a remarkable life, loving and serving everyone she came in contact with. As person after person stood to tell of the amazing impact she had on their lives, I was struck by the frequent use of the past tense to describe her—as if she were no more. Naturally, it’s difficult to give testimony about one’s life without using the past tense. When we leave this earth, all that we have done will be relegated to the past. But for those of us who believe Jesus’ words, who we are remains very much alive, just as a seed, when planted, produces something even greater than it did as a seed (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). We’ll be made better. As the father of the two young children I met this morning put it, “My wife’s even more of who God made her to be.” That’s something we can all take comfort in.

Your thoughts? Like Jesus’ words to Martha, do you believe this?