The visitation (part I)

The visitation service was last night.  I have never been to a service where the ushers have to seat you in the chapel because there are so many people standing in line.  As the line went down, they moved a few rows of seated people to the standing line.  By the time we got closer to the front of the line, the pews were almost full.  Many students from his school were there as well as a lot of older people.

As we entered the room where the family was, the high school minister from our church was standing in the doorway.  At first I was teasing him by asking him if he was the official greeter.  He said he started talking to a few people then I guess he decided to continue.  We talked as we waited for the line to move, and he told me he never had a student to die.  It was real hard on him.  He went to the family’s house and as he was praying with the dad, he prayed three words and that was it.  He couldn’t pray anything else because of his emotions. 
 
I told him I had been praying for the students that would be coming to the service, and he made reference to the number of people praying.  He did not know if he would be able to articulate what he needed to say during the service.  I told him he would do just fine.