Seeing Christ in the face of tragedy

As many of you may already know, last Monday our dear friends, The Kiehl's, lost their 18 month old little boy, Ezekiel. All week, we have been heartbroken. We can not believe what happened. We have prayed for our friends and begged the Lord to send them comfort and peace.

Praise the Lord we are able to travel back to Mississippi to support our friends and attend Ezekiel's funeral. Tonight, the Kiehl's invited us over to Teresa's parents house for supper. On the drive over, I was so nervous. I kept imagining the sorrow and sadness we were going to walk into. I kept trying to think of what I should and should not say. I kept telling myself not to lose it the moment we saw them.

But to my surprise, I saw something I never expected. We didn't walk into a home full of sadness and sorrow. We walked into a home full of laughter, joy, and hope. Yes, Teresa cried, as we all did, when she walked us over to Ezekiel's urn on the mantel; and as she told us how hard today has been preparing for the funeral. But then her and Jonathan smiled. They shared that they literally could feel the prayers of everyone "lifting them up and holding them".

Jonathan shared about the beautiful things he witnessed. About how he ran with Ezekiel in his arms, barefoot, to the hospital and there a woman offered him her sandals. He talked about how a man who had been full of nothing but anger and some animosity toward them had sobbed and begged for forgiveness and offered his condolences. About the 100's of Mexican people who attended Ezekiel's prayer service and how beautiful that was. He shared that while they initially feared this could ruin their marriage, that it in fact has brought them closer together than ever.

Teresa shared that Christ is strengthening them and how now more than ever before she wants EVERY SINGLE PERSON she encounters to journey with her to heaven. About how all the things she used to think were important, in fact are not and she realizes now the things that are.

Today I learned what true hope is. I saw it in the faces of my two friends. Thank You Lord for the beautiful witness of the Kiehl family! I pray that someday I can be filled with the same hope and faith of this incredible family.              

St. Ezekiel, Pray for Us!