Pulling and Leaning

I received some bad news this morning.  A dear friend has passed away.  She was one of my best friends in college, and has really been the one to keep the rest of us in touch over the years.  The doctors had given her 2-3 days to live two weeks ago, and she finally succumbed this morning.  So, even though I've been expecting the news, each day also brought hope that she would somehow pull through.  She leaves behind her husband and two teenaged children.

I cried a lot when I first heard she was in the hospital, and the tears have been threatening to escape their bonds again today.  But I don't think she would have wanted the tears.

It's hard to understand why God would allow someone to die so young.  But then, is there ever a good time for someone to die?

It would be easy to pull away from God right now.  All of my prayers unanswered, or worse yet, answered with a resounding "no."  But I don't think she would have wanted that, either.

When she was battling cancer a while ago, all she asked for was prayers.  This illness left her unable to ask for anything at all, so I prayed some more.

People are born, and people die, and both occasions are much more emotional for those around them.  A baby only knows it has gone into a different existence, not understanding yet what that will be.  Death must be a similar experience, a kind of birth in a way.

So I will lean on God.  Pull close instead of pulling away.  For I know that Dianne is with Him now.  And some day we will be together again.