Doing life together with Jesus (Jan 24, 2026)

Doing life together with Jesus (Jan 24, 2026)

John 16:33 (NLT) I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

Romans 12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.

1 Corinthians 12:26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

In January of 2004, my wife Colleen and I moved back to Lexington from Clay City in Powell County when our daughter Faith was 4 and Mercy was 2. We were coming out of a difficult situation that had been very emotionally and spiritually challenging for us. I will not go into those details, but when we moved back, it was important for us to find a church home to plug into. We found that church home at Church of the Savior where Steve Pearson was the Pastor.

We ended up staying at COS until March 2016, and over those 12 years I was so blessed by Steve who encouraged me to read my bible, taught me how to share my Faith (Evangelism Explosion, Prison Ministry) and helped Colleen and I both grow more deeply in our relationship with Jesus through his great teaching sermons. For those reasons and more, I will forever be grateful to Steve and all my brothers and sisters in Christ I have known from COS.

In March of 2016 I felt like the Holy Spirit led me to move to my current church (Hill N Dale Christian, which has since become Redeemer (RCC)) where I still attend and have been blessed and gotten to know so many other wonderful people and Brothers and sisters in Christ.

In the it’s a small world category, my current Pastor Trey and Prior Pastor Steve are in a Pastors group together that crosses many different churches, all with Pastors as fellow brothers in Christ that are trying to help support each other, and also help lead people to grow closer to Jesus, so I think that is so cool. In the end, it is all about Jesus.

When Colleen and I came back to COS in 2004, we were also looking to join a home group and develop close friendships and connect deeply with other believers as we all grew together in our relationship with Jesus, and with one another. We enjoyed the first group that we joined, but after 1 year, it was announced the group was breaking up. We had been in other similar groups, and they all ended up breaking up and not staying together long term and were searching for a small group to lay down deep roots and do life together.

I am not positive of the year, Maybe 2008 I think, Herb and Fran Osborn from the picture I posted offered a Home group and there was a sign up sheet at COS. Colleen and I joined that group and it really was such a blessing from God that we were able to do so. Our group started out by each person sharing their personal testimonies, how they came to Jesus, what struggles they had faced, how God had been faithful to walk through life with them, etc. We all opened up and shared deeply and honestly, and I believe the Holy Spirit used that time to bond our hearts and spirits together on a deep level.

We met on Sunday nights and the format was 5PM Potluck meal together where we shared stories and caught up, 6PM Bible study, 7PM Prayer requests and Praises.  We started out in the book of James, and over the years covered Acts, Genesis, Exodus, Romans, Hebrews, and several other books of the bible and our prayer time was personal and specific. We were all together in person up till Covid, and then via Zoom during Covid and Herb and Fran remained with us until 2024 when Fran started struggling with her health and they had to make their circle smaller, but for 15 years we were so blessed to all do life together, and even now, several of us continue to meet in 2026.

Every single person in our group had moments of Joy that we shared in their happiness with, and moments of deep sorrow and distress where we as spiritual family gathered around and prayed over whoever was in distress. I know in 2016 during the last year of my wife Colleens life, there were meetings when I felt like I did most of the talking during our prayer request time, and the same was true for others when they were in the fire and needed to share, the group all listened intently.

On December 22, 2016, our small group lost its first member to death, my wife Colleen when she died on December 22, 2016, when she was 48 years old. Leading up to her death, the last 3 years, and especially the final year of my wife’s life was a massive struggle for our family, and my small group helped us out in so many amazing ways.

One of my fondest memories I have in our group was that one Sunday as we were sharing prayer requests, Colleen who was struggling with Bipolar, Liver issues and the resulting mental illness, asked for prayer for her good friend George. I remember Herb, who was our lead Prayer warrior, was earnestly taking notes and was asking questions about George as he wanted to be sure of having the details to pray specifically and earnestly for George. I informed all that George was a stuffed animal, a lamb, my daughter Faith had given to her mom.

The reality is Colleen was talking as though George was alive, had feelings and was a friend in need. To many people, finding this out would have been weird. In fact, sadly several years prior when we first found out Colleen was suffering from Bi Polar and Mental Illness, she had several friends that were uncomfortable with Mental Illness and ended up walking away from Colleen and it brought a lot of pain to Colleen.

So, when this group discovered Colleen was talking to her stuffed animal George and believing George to be alive and her friend, when I shared the truth, there was no cringe vibe, there was only the love of Jesus for a fellow sister in Christ who was struggling and we were fully loved in all of our weirdness. Herb kept writing down the prayer request for George and we included George in our prayers. I will always love Herb (and the others in our group) for that day and it is a precious memory deep in my heart. I was already deeply bonded to this group, but that day the anchor dropped even deeper than I thought it could go.

There were so many other wonderful ways in which this group helped us that I could list, but this is just one example of many where all of us came together as adopted, forgiven children of God and walked through all the joys and sorrows of life together as fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

My small group attended my Wife Colleen’s Celebration of life service at COS on Saturday January 21^st, 2017, and in fact they provided all the deserts for that event and were so helpful. Fast forward 8+ years to last year, and on March 5, 2025, the second member of our small group, Fran Osborne died and our group attended her Funeral at COS on March 14, 2025 (Led by Steve). Just 2 days after that funeral service, on Sunday March 16^th, 2025, the 3^rd member of our small group (Brenda Newell) passed away at age 66 and we attended her funeral/Celebration of Life in Sommerset, KY on Friday March 21^st, 2025.  

I have vivid memories of Herb on March 14, 2025 crying at his wife Frans funeral. They had been married 58 years when she died and Herb was so overwhelmed. He was older than Fran and thought he was the one that would go first. He said to me at her graveside that he was so overwhelmed with sadness of being separated from Fran, and said He knew that I understood that as I had gone through the same years earlier with Colleen. The last time I spoke to Herb was at his home when I visited him in November. We spoke for 2 hours and he was so grateful to his two sons (Brian and David) for all the help they were giving. He also just continued to share his heart how much he was missing Fran and just wanted to go home to be with Jesus and see her again. I just looked up the date, as it was on November 22^nd. 22 is a special number to me as it was the day Colleen died, so the fact the Lord arranged my last meeting with Herb to also be on the 22^nd, I can see the Lords hand at work in that timing.

On January 10, 2026 our group lost it’s 4^th member when Herb passed away at his home at age 86. Yesterday, Friday January 23^rd, 2026 we gathered to attend Herb’s Funeral and Steve once again preached the funeral message. The common theme at Both Frans funeral and Herbs funeral was that we all have something imbedded deep in our souls that we long to be home. Colleen, Fran, Brenda and now Herb are all home with their God, in the Kingdom of Jesus, all walking on the shores of Heaven, and all will never again experience disease, suffering or death, and none will ever have to say the painful goodbyes we say at funerals again, but all only getting to say Hello as they welcome those of us who trust in Jesus and are fellow adopted, forgiven sons and daughters of God to Heaven when our turn comes. Some scripture that comes to my mind here:

Hebrews 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 14 For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. 15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Colleen, Fran, Brenda and Herb all died in Faith, all desiring a better heavenly country, and now on the other side of death all are now finally home with Jesus and while I miss them all, I am also so happy for each of them. I am enjoying those still alive for now, even as I look forward to being reunited with those I love, and ultimately being in Jesus Kingdom in Heaven, the true home my soul deeply longs for. In the meantime, doing life with fellow forgiven, adopted brothers and sisters in Christ is such a blessing, and I wish everyone to share in a similar blessing, so I hope you have that type of small group you are plugged into, and if not, I want to encourage you to pray for it as God is faithful and this life is too difficult to go through alone. We need Jesus, but we also need our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ God has blessed us with to rejoice with us and weep with us and to go through life together with.

Love you all, May Jesus bless each of you and your families