retia dukes

well you might wonder why it's been so long since the last post. on monday afternoon a sweet and dear friend of ours went to be with the Lord. back in april a husband and wife that means so much to brian and i was hit by a car while crossing the road. mr. jimmy broke several bones and ms. retia had severe head trauma and spent the next 3 weeks in a coma. she finally came out of coma and started to slowly recover. well this past weekend things got worse and she was put back in the ICU and on monday afternoon she went home to the Lord.

this was a woman who was the most incredible picture of a godly woman, wife, mother, grandmother and friend. i have known her since i was little and brian got to work along side her for years and had a very special relationship with her. their family has always meant the world to us and although we are so sad she is gone we are so blessed to know she is in heaven and that she leaves behind an amazing legacy.

so on tuesday we traveled down to new orleans to be with friends and family to celebrate the life of ms. retia. it was beautiful. she was beautiful. her life was beautiful. the whole time i kept thinking what a blessing and honor it is to be a wife, a mother, and a grandmother. i can't imagine anything greater.

after hugging so many necks and seeing people we have been out of touch with for too long we made the long trek back to nashville. although we hated the circumstances that brought us all together we couldn't image celebrating with a more amazing group of people. all i can say is that when you are in the Lord's army you win! the victory is and always will be his. whether in life or death he's got it!

thank you, Lord, for ms. reita and the life that she lived. thanking you for the blessing of knowing her and being touched by her life. may we remember the example she was to us and strive to have the servant's heart that she had.