Snapshots of Cindy Lou

We have lived in California for about 35 years. About 31 years ago we attended a small floundering church. It was there I met a really sweet lady named Cindy Jones. Her sweet family and mine went to church together until we all decided that it was time for this little church to close its doors. We went to a church on our side of town and the Jones went to a church across town near their home. Occasionally we came across Cindy's kids when our churches combined for youth activities. Then about twenty years ago, I was invited to give my testimony to a group of people in our church. I was surprised to find Cindy and her husband there. We visited a little after the class and I found Cindy to be the same sweet lady I had remembered when our children were young. I also found this longing to know Cindy better resurfacing, but we still went to different churches and both of our lives were full at the time, so I simply prayed for a connection to come about. A few years later after I had developed a healing ministry at my church Cindy joined our ranks ad served faithfully in our ministry for over ten years. 

Her daughter recently contacted me and told me her sweet mom was very ill and asked if I would ask her "tribe" of women to be praying for her and pray we did. Cindy was soon diagnosed with stage four cancer and put on hospice and quickly passed away. Her daughter asked people who had pictures of her to send them to her and when she asked, so many pictures of Cindy popped into my head that I thought I would have a bunch. Yet, when I went through my pictures, I only found two pictures. I was so confused, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense, because Cindy often chose to be a behind the scenes person. So, in this writing I thought I would paint a picture of Cindy through the snapshots that are in my mind. 

Cindy was an amazing woman of God who loved God's word and served in Bible Study Fellowship. Through conversations I had with her, I knew from the first time we met, that she was not only a student of the Word, but she was also a whole-hearted doer of the Word. This played out in so many ways. 

She and her husband Roger were married for 51 years and that's a whole lot of iron-sharpening-iron living. Even though I never once heard her speak evil of her husband, I know they traveled in groups that encouraged deep soul searching, transparent accountability, and extravagant grace giving. I suspect they learned early on to keep short accounts and to not let the sun set on their anger. The reason I believe this was true of them was because whenever I saw them together, I never sensed the unspoken tension that resides in marriages where either one or both hold grudges and/or struggle with forgiveness. 

Even though Cindy held several different types of jobs, all of which involved caring and serving others which she did so well. She was very creative wife and took great pride in her home and raised her family with what I would call a fierce love. When her kids were little, I remembered her being very loving and kind to them, but correcting them when needed. When things went well, she was right there with them and when things were difficult as they sometimes are for all of us, she leaned in and loved even more fiercely. She loved being a wife, a mom, and a grandma and loved nothing more than their family get togethers.

What I saw of Cindy in our ministry were snap shots of her as she showed a deep abiding compassion for both the ladies we serve and the ladies who served on our leader team. Her presence in ministry groups was calming, especially for women who had often lived with chaos as their compass. She could listen and listen and listen some more. And the stories she heard in groups she lead, were held close to her heart and in the strictest confidence. I never heard her gossip and never in this case really means never. 

Even though she had a quiet spirit, she also had an ability to speak truth into situations with both a bold sense of authority and a lavish grace that was beautifully blended. At our leader's retreats I can still see snap shots of her in so many different conversations with different ladies--the ones she knew well and the once's she barely knew but chose to get to know better. I saw her listening intently. I saw her empathiine big. I saw her speaking words of hope into many women's lives. I saw her praying over the women she spoke to. 

I was also a recipient of her love and encouragement. I am not sure she understood how valuable she was to me and to our leader team, but we all knew. At the retreats I got to see a few mom moments that I cherish so much. I got to see her beaming face as her daughter lead us in worship, as she created a beautiful pictures for craft time, or as she witnessed her using her voice to impart wisdom and truth to our group. As her husband shared at her memorial, Cindy was a prayer warrior. And I know I was on the receiving end of those power-filled prayers. 

There was only one little snag in our relationship...Cindy had a hearing problem, and I have an autoimmune disease that dries out my mouth and throat and makes it difficult for me to speak loudly without my voice hurting and cracking. Her children posted amazing tributes to their mom, which described her delight at being Mimi to her grandchildren. But her son shared something that spoke to my heart about our snag...In death Cindy was not afraid to join her Savior and that she is "whole once more and with her hearing restored, she hears the roar of Aslan. I haven't even seen that picture yet, but God has placed a living snapshot of it in my brain.  And it makes me smile.