Nancy Nelson Obituary, Resident Of Bloomington, MN Has Passed On

Nancy Nelson Obituary, Death – In our conversation a week and a half ago about Nancy’s memorial message, Bob stated, “Well, along with all the good news that there is in Jesus Christ, one major focus should be on suffering.” That may surprise you, not because you are uninformed of Nancy’s lengthy suffering, but because you may ask if such a focus might be encouraging for those of us left behind and a fitting memorial to Nancy’s trust in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

But Bob, Nancy, and I have known each other for almost forty years, and Bob knows what I will say about pain. Not a gamble. God’s word reveals many essential realities concerning suffering. I should also state that I do not speak for myself on such a sensitive and emotional matter. Not how Bob and I see it. He doesn’t want me to think positive thoughts. We may talk about pain in this environment because God’s word, the Bible, has taught us to see it a certain way.

I encourage you to join me in the Scriptures as we discuss five elements of suffering, notably Nancy’s. In their deathbed hours, Christians often ask, Why so much suffering? The question is difficult since a dying person has no time to grow or improve through his pain, so it all looks futile, squandered, and meaningless, including Nancy’s final suffering. What does God say? Nancy’s final sorrows were useless if we just observe. But God’s word shows us astonishing things about the unseen. In verse 17, “this light momentary affliction” prepared “an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison” for Nancy (katergazō, meaning “bringing about, producing”).