Sad News

We received word yesterday that a dear friend and cousin passed away this weekend. We just saw her three weeks ago. She is probably the first friend/relative to pass away that my children knew well enough to truly cherish, and she was pretty young-- just around sixty, I believe. It has been hard on them-- on all of us, really. And I am so sad for her husband, who knew what a treasure he had.

I look at her death, and at the miraculous blessing our family received in my grandmother's recovery last week, and the question seems to be, "Why there and not here, Lord?" But I know that is not the right question to ask.

The Lord does not deliver us from every heartbreaking event. We do not know why He does in some cases and not others, but that is how He works, and His ways are not our ways. The real question is why he does spare us in some cases.

He loves us. Sometimes he loves us by shielding us from sorrow, and other times he does it through sorrow. Last night I read this in Spurgeon's _Morning and Evening_:

He delights to give the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness. Trust thou in Him, and He will surely comfort thee till the house of mourning is closed for ever, and the marriage feast has begun.

It is hard to explain to the children the comfort and assurance I feel in spite of sorrow. What they are experiencing right now is that people you love sometimes die, and sometimes it happens suddenly. This is overshadowing other, more comforting truths. I know there will be hard questions to answer in our home for awhile. (Okay. They are always asking hard questions. What I mean is, more than usual.) Please pray for us, that Mr. Honey and I will find the right words to say, and that the Holy Comforter will bless their hearts with peace. And please pray for my extended family too.