Today's teaching text comes from Revelation chapter 2 beginning in verse eight.

To the angel of the church in Smyrna, write,

these are the words of him who is the first and the last,

who died and came to life again.

I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich.

I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not,

but are a synagogue of Satan.

Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer.

I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for 10 days.

Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor's crown.

Whoever has ears, let them hear what the spirit says to the churches.

The one who is victorious will not be heard at all by the second death.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks for God.

We'll have the honor last Saturday to be part of a memorial service for a 26-year-old man. August White passed away and into

the Lord's presence at the age of 26 after he'd been battling liver disease and other complications

for over a decade. His body finally could not fight any longer.

It was an absolute tragedy, an intelligent, creative, beautiful young man and his life cut short.

At the service, his father, my friend Mark, got up first to speak.

It was a moment.

You could sense God's presence in the room, you could sense one another's grief, and the anticipation of what does a father say in a moment like this.

And as Mark began to share in the midst of unspeakable grief, he said, even in the pain that we feel from losing August,

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