Stephen was one of those special youth who touched my life. He was energetic. He was a leader. He had an open heart for the Lord, and he loved helping make things happen in the youth group. And if that wasn’t enough, he had a cute older sister my age. I couldn’t have asked for much more at the time as a single young minister.
Around Easter, God blessed me with a program that Stephen really took to heart. I gave everyone an empty Leggs container (the ones shaped like eggs), and challenged them to go find something that symbolized new life and place it in their “egg”. We ended up with flowers and insects and all kinds of offerings. Afterwards, I showed them an empty egg, and shared with them about the tomb being empty and how that meant new life for us all.
Stephen liked the illustration so much that he started handing out empty eggs at school, sharing with the recipients about the empty tomb and its’ meaning. He called his eggs “resurrection eggs”.
Then, Stephen came out of remission. In six weeks, I saw a healthy, energetic young man become a puffy, lethargic mass. Although the cancer affected Stephen’s body, it did not affect his spirit. He still had a positive outlook and still loved to share resurrection eggs with those around him.
Stephen eventually slipped into a coma and was admitted to the hospital. One day as I was heading to the church, I got the inkling to stop at the hospital to see Stephen. As I went up to the floor, I met Stephens’ dad, who, with tears in his eyes, shared, “John, my son is dying.”
With my heart in my throat, I entered Stephen’s room. Stephen was in a pre-natal position coma, making whimpering sounds like a little puppy. Not knowing what else to do, I held Stephens’ hand and started to pray. I don’t know the time frame, but I suddenly noticed that the whimpering had stopped. I looked up and saw Stephen looking at me. I will never forget his look or what he told me:
“John, I’m going to be with Jesus. Take care of my mom and dad.”
A short while later, Stephen did go to be with Jesus, but his words of assurance stayed in my heart. The Easter story is not just a Sunday School story. The life of Jesus was not just a romantic fable. The Christian experience is not just a hoped-for fantasy. It's real, and what was true then is true now. The God who rolled the stone away then still moves stones for us today. The message of the empty tomb declares that no power on earth could keep Christ down then, and that no power or virus on earth can keep us down now when we are in Christ Jesus.
Stephen’s body we placed in the earth, but Stephen’s spirit had already been claimed. He had gone to be with Jesus.
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