The What If''s and Why's of Life
Today would have been my little sister Jan's fiftieth birthday. She died after having heart surgery in April of 1982 at the age of 24. She was a great sister, even though she was slowed down by congenital heart defects for which she had surgery as a baby and treatment all of her life. Every year on this day I think about her and I stop to consider what if she were still alive and why she died. I know that many of you do the same type of thing each year on the anniversary of a loved one's death. It is the normal thing to do. As humans, we don't have the answers. but we do have the ability to ask those kinds of questions and consider the what if's. The Lord is the only one who has the answers, and it is to Him we must go for our comfort and understanding.
I can't imagine Jan at 50. She was always very petite with very dark hair. I can't imagine her growing older and maybe having gray hair like me. I do know that it would be great to have a sister and to enjoy her company. I know it would be wonderful for my parents to still have two children, instead of just one. Jan always loved Christmas, so it would be great to have her around for the holidays and special times of the year. I know she would be a kind person and a good Christian lady. I will never forget the day she accepted Christ as her Savior at our home church. It was thrilling for me to see her make her public profession of faith, because she was so shy. I knew she was serious when she would step out in front of all of those people.
So, how has the Lord answered the questions for me? He has shown me that Jan's physical problems and her death were the result of living in a world corrupted by sin. Every cell of our bodies is effected, and it was her heart and other organs that were worse than most of us. Why did God allow her to die? He knew it was best for all of us, and He knew she would be fine in heaven until we get there. He may have even been saving her from other problems we would have faced on earth, if He had left her here. He has assured me that she is much better off there than she was here, because she wanted to be normal, and in heaven she is better than normal. I will have eternity to spend with her, too, so I will not have missed anything in the log run.
The main thing the Lord has shown me is that He left me here for a reason. Jan completed her course of life, but I have not. The Lord still has something for me and for all of us who are left here on earth. We must be diligent to be faithful to Him. We can't let the why's and the what if's of life paralyze us into inaction or depression. After all, God has proved His love for us by sending Jesus and providing eternal life for us. No matter what happens we can rest in the assurance that He loves us, and He is in control. He always does the right thing and the loving thing, even if we can't understand. Therefore, I am going to be faithful to Him until I can see Him, and He can explain it all to me. Oh yeah, and it will be good to see Jan again, too.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 10-12 and Matthew 4.
I can't imagine Jan at 50. She was always very petite with very dark hair. I can't imagine her growing older and maybe having gray hair like me. I do know that it would be great to have a sister and to enjoy her company. I know it would be wonderful for my parents to still have two children, instead of just one. Jan always loved Christmas, so it would be great to have her around for the holidays and special times of the year. I know she would be a kind person and a good Christian lady. I will never forget the day she accepted Christ as her Savior at our home church. It was thrilling for me to see her make her public profession of faith, because she was so shy. I knew she was serious when she would step out in front of all of those people.
So, how has the Lord answered the questions for me? He has shown me that Jan's physical problems and her death were the result of living in a world corrupted by sin. Every cell of our bodies is effected, and it was her heart and other organs that were worse than most of us. Why did God allow her to die? He knew it was best for all of us, and He knew she would be fine in heaven until we get there. He may have even been saving her from other problems we would have faced on earth, if He had left her here. He has assured me that she is much better off there than she was here, because she wanted to be normal, and in heaven she is better than normal. I will have eternity to spend with her, too, so I will not have missed anything in the log run.
The main thing the Lord has shown me is that He left me here for a reason. Jan completed her course of life, but I have not. The Lord still has something for me and for all of us who are left here on earth. We must be diligent to be faithful to Him. We can't let the why's and the what if's of life paralyze us into inaction or depression. After all, God has proved His love for us by sending Jesus and providing eternal life for us. No matter what happens we can rest in the assurance that He loves us, and He is in control. He always does the right thing and the loving thing, even if we can't understand. Therefore, I am going to be faithful to Him until I can see Him, and He can explain it all to me. Oh yeah, and it will be good to see Jan again, too.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Genesis 10-12 and Matthew 4.