In Memoriam.

Just got back from little 2-month old Kaden's memorial.  Hearing the news of his sudden passing, and of his parents' joy turned grief was a sobering moment.  Just months ago, only days before leaving to be here, I remember another such sobering moment, of another friend's sudden passing.   

Our lives are not without hurt.  The more I 'grow up' the more I realize that life just sucks.  Life's not fair, and don't we hate that our parents were right?  As an adult we've learned that difficulties only multiply in number and shock value. 

I say this not to be cynical.  Because I've said before that I cannot sustain a cruel image of our Father.  And I now reiterate this with added conviction.  Do you think He is blind to your sorrow?  Is He absent in your grief?  You must learn to cling to your Rescuer.    You must see His sufficiency in your life.  This will prove a stepping stone of f'th later on.  And I know that there's still a lot of later on, even though I feel like I've seen enough of life already.

It was a beautiful memorial tonight.  To see both foreign and local gathered together to mourn the loss.  Even in obvious grief, I saw Hope.  We will have our sadness.  We will ask Father the hard questions of why.  But where, O Death, is thy victory?  Not so for the Rescued.  Something to chew on in this season of the Risen One.