Death is Real...

Death is real and often brings us back to reality in so many ways. Last night I sat in my sister's room hugging her as she cried in my arms. She never shows emotion. One of her friends from church..his mom had died and my sister had just come from seeing him. What makes it so difficult for us to let go? My other sister will never get over my grandfather's death which happened 4 years ago. She constantly prays for him and it unfortunately keeps her from knowing the Lord. She doesn't understand why God would take someone away from her. I don't always understand either. Why would God take away an 18 year and her dad leaving a mom and two sisters, a grandfather, a best friend, or a mom of a 16 year old boy, etc. I don't know. But this is what I do know and what I claim to be true.

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." Psalm 116:15

Why is the death of saints precious to God? Because Jesus defeated death!!

"O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" 1 Cor 15:55

God gave his son to die for us, so that death would be defeated. We are able to be in a relationship with God and receive eternal life because of Jesus Christ. When someone who knows the Lord and have surrendered their life to him dies, its like Jesus takes that person by the hand..runs up to the Lord and rejoices and says "Look, Father, look what we have done! Look at the fruit from what we have done! Look, another sinner that has been saved and another soul that has been made perfect!!" This is precious to God.

I don't know much but I do know that "God works all things for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son..." God has a plan. His way is perfect and flawless(2 Sam 22:31) and he wants us to become like his Son. And so through death we can find comfort that God knows what is best and NOTHING works outside of his plan. Though we mourn, because it is never an easy thing, we can rest in the Lord's plan for us. Death always hits me hard, but I don't know how I would cope if I wasn't able to find comfort in God and his plan for my life. God has saved us, not because of anything we have done but becuase of his mercy and love. And becuase of that we praise him and glorify him by living for him, surrending our lives to him, making him our treasure above all else and by getting to know him more and more everyday.

So when it comes to death and suffering..I don't have all the answers, but through my experience and the things that I know are true, I can cling to my Father and the cross and know more of the God who has saved me from eternal death and has given me life in Jesus Christ.