All of the loss that I have recently seen...

Recently there has been a number of people that have passed away that I have known of.  There have been those famous people who have passed that everyone already knows about and there have been a couple of people in my own personal life that have passed away recently as well.  

These other people are not famous or rich (I am not putting down anyone who is famous or rich that has recently passed away), but they were still people who had potential and lives in which they impacted many people.

The first one was a young man named Glen (he was only a couple of years older than me) who passed away recently.  Glenn was a person who attended the church that I pastored at last yea and he was a very good man.  He left behind a beautiful child named Emma and a special woman named Lois.  He was very educated and was involved in the ministry and he liked to help people.  He helped to make the world a better place. If the world was filled with people like Glenn, the world would be a lot more peaceful than it is.

The second person was a child named Michael who was 2 years old.  His father is a Marine named Brian who just had back surgery and is in a wheelchair.  Brian is currently at a hospital having a nervous breakdown and could use your prayers.  Michael is survived by Brian, his mother Melissa and Joyce, not to mention his siblings.  Michael had the kind of smile that made you believe that anything was possible and he even dressed up as the Flash for Halloween.  Eyes couldn't get any more bluer than little Michael's.

How many of us have been affected by the loss of a loved one in our lives and in what way were we impacted by those that we have loved and lost?  How long will we remember those that have gone on before us?  

I remember a girl that I knew that passed away 18 years ago when I was 16.  I remember the anguish, the pain, and the despair, as well as the things about this person that made me care for her.  Even to this day I still think about her and I wonder if I will ever forget.

I can't help but imagine what people would say about me if I passed away tonight.  What legacy will I leave behind, who have I hurt, who have I helped, is the world different because of my life? 

The big question is what will people say about you if you were to pass away?  Is the world better because of you?  Did you help someone to believe in something?  Did you help other people?  Did you love as much as you could have?

I invite everyone reading to share some stories that they might have about someone they have lost and I invite everyone to answer the questions that I have asked.  If you are one of the people blessed enough to have known either Glenn, or Michael, than I encourage you to share what you feel.  I also strongly encourage everyone to please direct your prayers to both Glenn and Michael's family.  I can only imagine just how much they might need those prayers right now.

With Hope

This is not at all 

How we thought it was supposed to be

We had so many plans for you

We had so many dreams

And now you've gone away

And left us with the memories of your smile

And nothing we can say

And nothing we can do

Can take away the pain

The pain of losing you, but ...

We can cry with hope

We can say goodbye with hope

'Cause we know our goodbye is not the end,

And we can grieve with hope

'Cause we believe with hope

(There's a place by God's grace)

There's a place where we'll see your face again

And never have I known

Anything so hard to understand

And never have I questioned more

The wisdom of God's plan

But through the cloud of tears

I see the Fathers smile and say well done

And I imagine you

Where you wanted most to be

Seeing all your dreams come true

'Cause now you're home

And now you're free, and ...

We have this hope as an anchor

'Cause we believe that everything

God promised us is true, so ...

So we can cry with hope

And say goodbye with hope

We wait with hope

And we ache with hope

We hold on with hope

We let go with hope

God bless,

chris g.