We recently attended a funeral for the grandmother and great-aunt of several of our students. This kind and devoted grandma passed away at 61 years of age after a long, exhausting fight with cancer. Teacher Ming had been visiting her and her cousin at home most Sunday evenings for the past year to read them Bible stories and pray together. We desperately miss Grandma, and our hearts are hurting. Yet, we have the hope that when Grandma hears Jesus calling His sheep one day, she will recognize a quality in His voice that reminds her of the love she experienced when she was with us.

On the final day of the funeral rites, we joined the family in the procession to take Grandma’s remains to be cremated at the village temple. In the blazing afternoon sun, the temperature soared to 99 F (37 C). As we plodded along, one of several grandmothers, dressed all in white, fainted and fell on the road. I rushed quickly to help her, but one auntie told me I couldn’t touch her because the funeral ritual they were observing didn’t allow her to be touched by any male until after the rites were completed. I watched as another elderly woman struggled to help her fainted friend rise back onto her feet.

As we walked on in the sweltering heat, the incident caused me to reflect on how, as Christians, we may also have traditions, rituals, beliefs, or even just opinions that keep us from serving people and connecting with them when they need us most, or when we need them. It is always good to ask ourselves, “Am I holding onto anything that is preventing me or others from experiencing Jesus’ love to the fullest?”

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