August 21, 2026
- Isaiah 61:1-3
- 2 Corinthians 4:16–5:9
- John 14:1-6
You never know how life unfolds.
The moment you think you’ve got it figured out, another surprise pops up and catches you off guard.
Sometimes, it brings you a smile.
Other times, tears.
As we go through our busy days, sometimes all we can do is get through the moments without giving them much thought.
Yet every now and then, we are given a moment like today—
when we can sit,
take a deep breath,
recognize the preciousness of the moment,
and give thanks.
It was a very strange day when I visited Kenny at Glen Ridge.
I was driving back to church from another appointment downtown. I could have taken the highway and avoided all the traffic lights, but for some reason, I chose the more scenic route instead.
As I was driving down Bardstown Road, something told me:
Keep going. Don’t turn on Hurstbourne.
Then I heard this little whisper:
You gotta go see Kenny and Betty at Glen Ridge. They’re close to you.
Hmmm.
I kept driving.
And again:
Go see him.
So I did.
As I drove into the parking lot, I sighed.
I wasn’t quite sure how Kenny would respond to my surprise visit. It had been a while since I had last seen him.
I got out of the car, was escorted toward his room—
and then I ran into a familiar face.
Dennis.
“Aren’t you Dennis?”
Another surprise!
I wasn’t completely sure at first. He had a little more white in his beard, and he was certainly more animated than I remembered him from Sunday mornings.
But that brief, pleasant encounter put me at ease.
Looking back, it was almost as though that little encounter helped prepare me to see Kenny.
And when I finally got to him, all my worries disappeared.
Kenny welcomed me.
We had a moment together.
It was a good visit. And I was so glad that I had listened to that little voice and stopped to see him.
What I didn’t know—
what I didn’t even think about—
was that it might be the last time I would see him.
The next few days were remarkable.
I got to witness all the love Kenny’s family had for him—and for one another.
It was selfless love.
Patient love.
Respectful love.
Caring love.
And eventually, that love gave them the strength to let Kenny go—to entrust him to God when Kenny was ready.
It was time to say goodbye.
And Kenny was ready.
[pause]
I have been thinking about all of these little encounters—
taking the scenic route,
hearing that little whisper,
running into Dennis,
sitting with Kenny,
watching his family surround him with love—
and I have decided to call them God moments.
God moments.
Those moments that may not seem particularly important at the time.
Sometimes we don’t even recognize them.
But later, when we stop…
when we take a deep breath…
when we look back…
we realize:
God was there.
And every one of us is here today because, somewhere along the way, you shared some of those God moments with Kenny and with his family.
Some made you laugh.
Some probably drove you crazy.
Some seemed completely ordinary at the time.
And some, especially now, may bring tears.
But they are precious.
Scripture tells us:
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”
There was a time for Kenny to be born.
A time for him to live.
A time to love and to be loved.
A time for laughter.
A time for struggle.
A time to hold on.
And finally, a time to let go.
Kenny’s suffering is over.
And now we entrust him to the God who has loved him through every season of his life.
For us Christians, death does not have the final word.
As our faith reminds us, life is changed, not ended.
And so today, even in our sadness, we give thanks.
We give thanks for Kenny.
We give thanks for his life.
We give thanks for his love.
And we give thanks for all those God moments—some we recognized when they happened, and perhaps many more that we are only beginning to recognize now.
So as our own journey continues, every now and then—
stop.
Take a deep breath.
Pay attention.
Remember Kenny.
Love one another.
Because perhaps we don’t need to go looking for more God moments.
Perhaps they are happening all around us.
We simply need enough love to notice them.
Amen.
