Morning by Morning, September 30, 2025 — “Radiant” in the Presence of the Lord: Honoring the Life of Pepper Steventon
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I speak out Your name and listen for Your voice to begin my day embraced by my Father, centered in Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit (John 10:27). ...
“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed” (Psalm 34:4-5).
We’ve just returned from a few days with family in Arizona, where I was honored to lead the Celebration of Life for my stepsister, Pepper Steventon. At only 53 years of age, her passing was truly tragic and unexpected from an infection at the hospital, after overcoming two battles with cancer. As her name says, she was truly the spice of life. And now we all take such comfort that she’s looking to You, radiant in Your Presence, adding a little spice to heaven. No more sorrow. No more pain. Only eternal joy.
Thank You for the grace to both grieve the loss of our loved ones here on earth, while at the same time, celebrating their lives here on earth and also forever with You. These kinds of funerals are so much different than the other kinds. As Your Word comforts us in the passing of one who knows You in personal relationship:
“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope” (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Thank You that we do have hope. You are our Hope. And in You, we have assurance of the eternal peace and joy that’s found in You alone. “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Pepper had that rare spirit of being both a hard-charging CEO of her business while also being a loving wife, devoted mother and daughter, loved and cherished by family and friends. Her battles with cancer and its effects, along with all the other battles and challenges of her life, only drew her closer to You, with her faith outspoken, vibrant and radiant. What a witness. What an inspiration. She sought You and You heard her. You delivered her from all her fears. Sometimes those answers come here on earth; sometimes they come in heaven. She’s in heaven now. She’s radiant now. “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (1 Corinthians 15:57) But we can all carry that same heaven in our hearts today, with that same personal relationship with You. “On earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). For Your kingdom of heaven is also within us, as we abide in You and You abide in us (Luke 17:21; John 15:4). And with Your kingdom of heaven within us, we can already experience Your “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” who’s living in us, comforting us, leading us through the valleys of the shadow of death with Your ever-abiding Presence with us through it all (Romans 14:17; Psalm 23). In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today. In the love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My friend, may you be radiant with the Presence of the Lord, as you abide in Him and He abides in you every day, in Jesus' name. God bless you, my friend! And you have a great day!
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Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries 502 North Milam Street Fredericksburg, Texas 78624
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