Now at home with his heavenly Father.
I remember Carlos as this tall man (at least taller than me) - with a dark complexion, dark hair and a thick mustache and...
a smile that made you wonder - why is he smiling like that???
When Carlos and Berta would come to church - you couldn't miss him... he carried himself in such a way - he had this presence about him...
There was just something about Carlos... what was up with this man!!! You just wanted to meet him!!!
What was up with Carlos - was His love for Jesus!!!
His love for Jesus was so evident, so strong - that it carried him... his love for his Savior came out of his pores...
There was a joy about him - that even in his sickness - you felt...
You see his joy was not based on his circumstances but on his relationship with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
After a long and eventually very painful battle with cancer - Carlos passed away peacefully surrounded by many who loved him.
He felt that whether he lived or died... he was a winner either way - because it was all about Jesus.
I remember the night when I received the text from Berta indicating that the doctors believed he would pass away that evening...
After a long and eventually very painful battle with cancer - Carlos passed away peacefully surrounded by many who loved him.
He felt that whether he lived or died... he was a winner either way - because it was all about Jesus.
I remember the night when I received the text from Berta indicating that the doctors believed he would pass away that evening...
I knew Carlos was going to pass away - part of me couldn't make sense out of it or wrap my head around that thought. I don't know... I was holding on to a miracle - that one day I would see him walking into church with his big smile.
His wife Berta... goodness what a woman if only you could have the opportunity to listen to her share her heart , what a blessing. I would love it if she could visit me each day and share with me... I have been so so incredibly blessed by her. During her visits I tried to minister to her, but goodness it was just the other way around!! Wow... what a blessing. In hearing her share about Carlos, I pray that I can love my husband the way she loved Carlos. Through the good and the bad, through health and sickness - she was by his side - his rock. It was something special...
We are now in the process of planning Carlos' memorial service...
His wife Berta... goodness what a woman if only you could have the opportunity to listen to her share her heart , what a blessing. I would love it if she could visit me each day and share with me... I have been so so incredibly blessed by her. During her visits I tried to minister to her, but goodness it was just the other way around!! Wow... what a blessing. In hearing her share about Carlos, I pray that I can love my husband the way she loved Carlos. Through the good and the bad, through health and sickness - she was by his side - his rock. It was something special...
We are now in the process of planning Carlos' memorial service...
A Celebration of Life
We have been talking, texting, and she has passed by my office a couple of times to share and to plan.
Carlos will be missed - but his legacy will live on forever... praising God for his life...
Thank you Lord for giving me and so many the opportunity to be blessed by Carlos Bermudez.
I am just in awe of the strength she has... but again - it is the strength that can only come from God.
When she came to visit me after her husbands death... the first thing I noticed was the necklace around her neck... from the necklace was a wedding band... his wedding band... I don't know why it captured my eye, but I was captivated by it - I just couldn't stop looking at it... I felt as if she was holding a piece of him near to her heart - the sign of the commitment they made to each other - til death do us part - something intimate.
As she sat and spoke to me about his life and death - without realizing it she would hold on to his ring and twirl it around her fingers... the security she needed, the strength she needed, to be able to continue sharing about the tremendous blessing that he was to her and to so many who crossed his path.
Yesterday Berta came by again to finalize the details of this celebration... and the ring was still there close to her heart. And as we planned out the details of his memorial service - with a smile on her face - she rubbed the ring... and would clasp it in her hand - as if holding his hand, a little reassurance that it was going to be okay... that he was still there, in her heart.
So many lessons learned - but I leave you with one that Berta shared with me regarding one of Carlos' all time favorite movies - its called "Gumball Rally" - and this scene was one of his favorites that Carlos quoted - the scene is called "the first rule of an Italian driver:
As she sat and spoke to me about his life and death - without realizing it she would hold on to his ring and twirl it around her fingers... the security she needed, the strength she needed, to be able to continue sharing about the tremendous blessing that he was to her and to so many who crossed his path.
Yesterday Berta came by again to finalize the details of this celebration... and the ring was still there close to her heart. And as we planned out the details of his memorial service - with a smile on her face - she rubbed the ring... and would clasp it in her hand - as if holding his hand, a little reassurance that it was going to be okay... that he was still there, in her heart.
So many lessons learned - but I leave you with one that Berta shared with me regarding one of Carlos' all time favorite movies - its called "Gumball Rally" - and this scene was one of his favorites that Carlos quoted - the scene is called "the first rule of an Italian driver:
Carlos will be missed - but his legacy will live on forever... praising God for his life...
Thank you Lord for giving me and so many the opportunity to be blessed by Carlos Bermudez.
