Death - Black Friday

Death stinks. It is the curse of God at its worst.

Last month I attended a funeral of a young man from my hometown. His mother an active member in the church/community, it was torture to acknowledge her loss. Nothing can bring him back. And no matter how much I hurt for her, it doesn't help.

How can life stop so quickly? One day a person "exists", the next day... life is snuffed out.

I do believe Jesus came to redeem us from the curse. Only He can. As He redeems us, we have hope. We also still have consequences. Death is one of them.

Today was Black Friday. For my family it was Black, but not because of shopping. Today Daddy, Robert and I took my grandmother's sixteen year old dog to the vet to be put to sleep. I've never done that before.

I try to stay as far away from death as possible. In Ghana I have even risked the possiblility of being rude as I refused to enter a room with a dead body. I can list the loved ones on one hand which I have seen at a funeral. But today we took Grandma's dog in to the vet. She had an I.V. and they put in the injection. She simply became still, as if asleep. No pain, no barking, no strange breathing like they warned us. Just lifeless. Because she was. Just like that she was out of pain. Just like that she was gone. She took a breath and then the next moment didn't. They gave her back to us in a box, per our request. We took her home, buried her and now await the return of my grandmother who is out of town.

I've never cried over a pet before. Well, maybe a puppy that wouldn't nurse but that's not the same as a dog that's been around for 60% of my life. What's hardest is seeing everyone hurting around me and knowing that my grandmother has lost a loved one that was like her child! And again, nothing can ease the pain.

When we look at the results of the curse as a result of our sin we see its effects...things that hurt us...thorns, stickers, plants that hurt, dry ground that yields nothing, broken relationships and more. BUT these things we choose to "work around" in our life. People still grow plants with thorns on them because they yield something beautiful or useful. We still live where thistles, thorns and stickers grow. Where ants bite and bees sting, snakes slither and coyotes howl. But no one chooses to still live among death. It just happens. We fight it, try to reverse it but we cannot control it.

It makes me realize that we are not promised tomorrow. I've found myself feeling a bit sad when I think of what I'll miss out on in life as I move to Ghana, important moments, huge changes. People have asked what I would do if I lost a loved one or gained a new one in the family. What is this going move going to look like in its entirety?

I don't know. I don't know if I will come back to the US for every funeral. I don't know if I'll come back for weddings or births. I don't know. What I do know, is that I still have breath.

My hope and prayer is that with each breath I will not relax in regards to the Good News. If those around me can be gone in just one breath, then I need to make the most of each of mine!

If you are reading this and don't believe in God, I implore you...search for Him. Test Him and see that He is God. Without Him there is no hope. Without Him there is no redemption and no peace. With Him, we still reap consequences of the the way we are but He is WITH us. That's just from my own experience.

No man knows the day or the hour...we are not promised tomorrow...weep with those who weep...

Also, on a different note, let's not forget those around us who are hurting in their losses and will continue to hurt. Please let's not forget!