Greg Strawder - Continued Remembrance

    I've been reminded that we are called to remember Brother Strawder, again, five years later since his passing. Greg was a friend and church brother that I came to know before his unexpected and premature death; I wrote about him briefly in April of 2015, and I spoke at his funeral. This was an honor and special experience for me. I wish to reflect a little more about him now. I wanted to reflect more in print and prose back then, and I thought that I would do that, as I wrote in that brief eulogy, but I cannot find any of the notes from those weeks and months with respect to that, so here goes.

    When it comes to God, He is either there or He isn't. There are those that say that God or many gods are hanging around in the margins, that they may be floating around but they do not really care, or that they cannot control anything, and that the afterlife is nothing, that we cease to exist with our dying breath, and life in many ways is lacking meaning due to the ethereal and ephemeral nature of existence. Deep I delve here, okay, and rather sad to consider what so many believe, but true of what many think in the 21st century. It is the biggest fad, I think, to buy into the nothingness of nothingness beyond what we can empirically measure and see. But that worldview denies the heart and the mind, and what I know as the Spirit of the divine. Millions proclaim and decry: there is no God! And if there is a God, they cry, be it male or female or it, unshaped and amorphous, they cannot possibly love me or the world and inhabitants who live in it! The world, according to them, is an unfair quagmire of systematic hate, or at minimum an existence of chaotic greed.

    I do not agree. And, I know that Greg disagreed with these atheistic or agnostic, cynical and pessimistic notions as well. We believe that God is there, that He can be with us, that He cares immensely, and that we are a part of His divine plan. His nature is ours, only perfected, unlike us, we are the fallen with a path to redemption. He gives us the way to His perfection and peaceful reign in the eternities. Greg knew he was flawed, he was a humble, contrite man, ready for something better; now that I am fifty years-old myself, I see those human frailties and flaws in me and others more acutely than ever; I see that we as very imperfect creatures are far from the wholeness that we seek, but we must find it in grace and truth and sacrifice and devotion and faith. I want to keep searching for goodness and truth as my older brother Greg did.It is not all on us, but we have supreme out, a safety plan. And we must trust in a higher, more beneficent Power. We cannot just try to be good and do good things in and of ourselves and our own efforts. We depend on repentance and the love and pardon of Jesus Christ and the goodness of God to grant us a better life, peace and rest. Heaven. God makes us malleable pots of clay when our will is placed in His. It is a matter of submission and acceptance of His will, as any profound philosophy would proscribe. Accept the greater, higher powers and authority. Respect the eternal laws, and try your best to abide by them.

    I believe Greg knew that is what he needed, because he was not an island (and no one is) and he could not conquer all ills by himself, and that ultimately we all need Someone else, and when he met the kind and energetic sisters, full time dedicated missionaries, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sterling, a vocation that they had been set apart to do, he was ready for the invite. He allowed them in, listened to their messages and teachings, accepted the principles and doctrines that they brought, attended the local church and fell in with us, fellow members, brothers and sisters of all races and backgrounds and economic strata. Greg's wife came along and supported his discoveries in this new religion, too. 

   

    Might I add that the religion may seem new and novel to many, but if you delve into the beliefs more you might find something deeper and older and more sublime.

 

   In that time, 2011 or so, I was a called set apart teacher and missionary in our local congregation called the Algonkian Ward: I lived about a mile from Greg's home, and I would help teach and share with Greg and his wife about the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus and His Saints and apostles, and people like Doug Pr., Mike Wa., and Mike Ri., and Dave Al., and others would go into his home and share the love of God and the community that we understood to be the Kingdom of God on Earth, our own version of the good society. This would occur at church on Sundays and other times in his living room, or at a social activity with food or song, or a Christmas party or service project. We were Saints of the Latter Days of the Second Coming of the Son of Man; only as holy and perfect as He allowed us to be, not "saints" as other Christians make them out to be as some mystic heroes; just simple followers of the Master, taking upon us His name and His commandments. Committing and living to have His Holy Spirit to be with us. This is who we aim to be now, and always. This is a long term race, the ultimate race for success and prosperity. The blessings and the promises of the ancient Holy Scriptures are all at play in this game of faith. No small thing. Greg came on board!

   Greg accepted the invitation to be baptized in the name of Jesus, by one who has authority, in the symbolic waters of baptism that both represents the death of the old sinner and being born again with hope and joy in the Perfect One as a new follower, and also representing the the physical death that we must all pass and the great moment and ecstasy of the future resurrection of our mortal vessel, the one that brought us into the universe as a zygote and continued in our mother's womb, transporting outward into the blessed and sometimes cursed air and lands of our planet.

    Greg was born in Chicago. A tough place as I know it, and as I heard references from him in his situation in his own words. Raised in Chicago, Illinois. Brought up with a lot of good, but some bad as he told me, and he learned to fight and hit, play organized semi-pro football where he took his lumps and received bruises and some permanent pains that would not go away. Greg lived with some lifelong ills and pains. He got used to it, and dealt with it in the ways he knew how. He learned to survive and cope with his less than optimal medical conditions. He probably lasted longer than many in his same situation. I thank our Heavenly Father that he was around long enough for me to come to know him. People like his wife and mother-in-law and others guided and aided him.

   God put him here, and God took him back, all in His due time. Greg accepted that. Greg knew Heavenly Father was all powerful and all knowing, and despite the struggles and real world pains and turmoil that he faced as a youth and an adult, he found goodness and ran with it. That includes his beloved wife, before I had the fortune of knowing him, and that for me involves how I knew him as a brother in Christ. Illinois, New York, Georgia, Virginia. Greg had places to go and souls to touch. He did. He did! You had to know him, and if you did not meet him you missed out.

   Here we are in 2021, when race becomes the byword of wrongs and evil, now almost a year since the American streets became alive with rage and castigation, protest and defiance. Greg did not live on the earth to see these days of pandemic and marches; I would love to hear his take on it, his insight.

   But for me personally, Greg was a strong and kind Black man, and he and I became brothers beyond skin tone, because the pigment of a man or a woman only means this much in the world. Identity and character go deeper. I went with Greg the second time that he went to the Holy temple of Washington D.C. For those that don't know, the first time one goes to the temples in our faith for the initiatory ordinances, which are washing and anointing, and then soon after we go to the endowment rooms, starting with the Creation Room, and learn about our first earthy parents and our relationship with God and Jesus and His appointed servants, followers, disciples. We make solemn promises to God and commitments to live closer to His way, and follow His commands. 

    Going through this two hour experience and the ceremonies and rituals for the first time can be overwhelming, albeit mostly amazing and joyous, and a bit of an overload to the senses, so going back for the second time, and doing the vicarious work for another soul who has passed, I felt strongly would be important for Greg to take it in more slowly and with less fanfare, as the first time many people from the ward accompanied him. He enjoyed it; I am sure that we had a good conversation in the Celestial Room about the sacred proceedings and some of the meanings of the lessons and presentations shared. Being in the Celestial Room is like being in heaven: it is quiet, beautiful, peaceful, and one feels like they are in the presence of God and angels.

 

   After this pleasant experience Greg and I went to a McDonald's, likely in nearby Bethesda. I remember that Greg got french fries, and he enjoyed them. To a lot of people the memory of french fries would not stand out, but for me they did that day. For most of the years of my wife and children till then, some 13 or so years, we would have our share of McDonald's burgers and sundaes, but those were cheap and we generally saved money by not buying fries or sodas or shakes. Fries were a delicacy and treat for me, and I saw how much Greg enjoyed them. That was nice for both of us. A small reward for living a temple-centered life.

    French fries at the fast food restaurant represented a bonus for striving to do God's will. That day at the temple Greg and I served those that could not do those ordinances for themselves; our kindred dead beyond the veil needed us, and we were serving them. Gratefully.

    It felt like the same day, it may have been, that Greg and I went to Sister Stacey's house to give her a priesthood blessing of health. This was Greg's first time doing it. I remember giving my first blessings of health to people, and it was a quite a learning and sometimes draining experience.

     It was good for Greg, the blessing for the sister and the temple visit, requiring hours of attention, but afterwards when I took him home he was done, and so was I.  But that was a special day, and I am grateful to have had it. He inspired me then and much in relation to his faith and willingness to learn and grow and serve. As a convert of the Church of Jesus Christ, like my parents and my adopted grandma and Sister Stacey and many others throughout my life, Greg showed me the continual wonders and miracles of the faith that we posit in Jesus, the respect and reverence that we show for the emblems of His sacrifice and meaning to us, His spiritual children, rescued and gathered by Him. Converts, those who enter the faith as older people, not raised from birth, as former President of the Church Gordon B. Hinckley, who we consider a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator of God, said about those them:  "they are the lifeblood of the Church". In other words, we would die without them. Not all faiths are like that, but I believe we are.

    Greg certainly was an infusion of lifeblood to me and my faith and my life; I am grateful for him and his influence; he stayed stalwart to the end of his life, which is about all anyone can do, an example of perseverance and love. There were friends from his nursing home that attended his funeral and the dinner after; they entered a Church of Jesus Christ in our local chapel for the first time; Greg was their missionary who brought them in. I am sure he is reaping the benefits of his good faith on the other side.

   Like my mother Ruth, my father Ed, my adopted grandma Ruby, the converts from my mission, the former ones that I knew across Chile, some of whom were my bishops or mission leaders, or sisters and brothers who fed me and took me in as their own, some of my missionary companions, the hundreds of other converts to my faith that I have met in the states and other countries where I have lived, my home state of Indiana, and five other states that I have lived in, plus all the other states and countries where I have visited and met with with my fellow Saints who are converts. This includes meeting the newly joined in wards and branches in Mexico, Canada, Kabul and Kunduz and Mazer-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, Spain, Nevada, Arizona, South Dakota, the panhandle of Florida, Saint Petersburg, Florida, the Shenendoah Valley of Virginia, the back roads of North Carolina, and on and on. We are everywhere, almost. I have witnessed and observed these grafted in members, like, Greg, across the globe.

    There are people who are honest of heart that become new members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints almost everywhere you go; it is exciting to my kind, a member of enthusiasm, and energizing to us life long members to observe and witness this phenomena. I am not saying that this is not true of Jehovah's Witnesses and Baptists and Evangelicals and Muslims and Hari Krishnas and others who seek true devotees and acolytes, including the modern secular folks and altruists and super philanthropists and benefactors who do their great things, but Greg did not join them in his last years, he joined us. He joined in my faith, and for that I celebrate him and his meaning to me. Greg became my spiritual brother, on my grounds. Clark and Kathy Ki. helped Greg when he was down, as did others, and we communed with his spirit and his soul. He brought us new hope and life.

     Greg was a special man. I remember him and his example. I am not the only one, but perhaps I am the one who gives it this much verbiage, which does not mean I am more special, but it bespeaks of his life and example. He has a son remaining, that I hope learned some things from his father which he will pass on to others and the next generations. If we are all so lucky and blessed we will go where Greg has gone.

    He followed the Spirit of God, he followed his heart, he communed and accepted us humble followers, he was not perfect but he learned that he can be perfected thanks to what he found and accepted. Jesus Christ and His kingdom. That is the short and sweet of it. Now he has eternity to grow on, with God, and hopefully many of us.

   God bless you and all yours, Greg. Many of us are yours and you are ours. Jesus prayed that we would be One in Him, with Him, and that he would be One in us, and all of us be one with the Father. May we be so united! 

  

    That is how I see it, I feel it. We must be one with another and with God; He cares for and loves us, by returning to Him we shall be one in heart, spirit, and cause. We will see the face of God, and our countenances will be His. For we are His, His children and creations. We are divine Greg. We are saved and exalted and must be One with Him: one community, one people.

   Yes, Greg, we have sacrificed here and there, we have taken some lumps, some of us have suffered privations and unfair conditions and circumstances, some of us have been compelled to run in circles that we did not like, work shifts and wages and jobs that were less than favorable. We have had family and friends and associate that thought that they were helping us, but in reality they were not. We have been hurt, physically, mentally, emotionally, morally, spiritually.  We have sought after the balm of Gilead, the healing of the Master, the touch of the Healer, to access and embrace our Benevolent Creator on High. However, we have come across and enjoined many good and great people despite all the difficulties. We can list them by name.

     We have seen many highs and lows in this mortal sphere, in this realm of dreams and some nightmares. You made it through, Brother Greg; you showed many of us a special light. You spoke of working with the youth, helping them. There are plenty of young souls in heaven, Greg. You can do your heart's desires above. You can help them and bring them closer to the light and God's love, like you helped some of us here. You helped me see and re-see, feel and wonder anew, and review, value, and cherish the blessings and the gifts that are offered to me and others in this life.

         And yes, Greg, you have made it to the Golden Arches. Way beyond hamburgers and shakes. 

        Yes, Greg, I'll have the fries with that order, please.

        Thank you. Thank our Heavenly Father for you. We are all so blessed.