Death hurts.  Anytime we experience this loss, we grieve.  Thankfully, that is not wrong, for we desperately miss those who have died.  Every person alive knows the pain of death.  Thankfully, we are all equal in birth and death.  Of late, my husband has commented about the obituaries we read in our local newspaper, stating how the ages of some are rather close to our ages.  Whenever he speaks these words, they make me pause to remember how my own dad died when he was younger than my age now.

Furthermore, one only needs to watch the news for five minutes, and the expectancy of pain, of death, of tragedy transpires.  Most recently, it has been the horribleness of the flooding in Texas that swept so many lives to their sudden deaths.  A sweet soul at church last night spoke aloud the words all were feeling:  “It just breaks my heart to see all this loss.”  We quietly reflected deep inside our being how her words rang true.

Years ago, when I was a college student majoring in Broadcasting, one of my professors repeatedly said:  “If it bleeds, it leads.”  At the time, I took his statement as a guiding principle for the story that needed to be chased, that needed to be reported.  Back then, I knew exactly what he meant because the leading story most-often was the most tragic story.  Now years later, I have begun to see his statement differently.  While his teaching remains true for the reporter chasing the story, the statement now causes me more reflection.  It was the late Reverend Billy Graham who said:  ”Every cemetery testifies that our days on this planet are indeed numbered” (Hope for Each Day 391).

Today, I find myself asking the question:  Why do we envision death as loss, as the ‘bleeding story,’ rather than seeing the loss of one’s earthly life as a beautiful blessing?  Shouldn’t we not, instead, envision how earthly death leads the one who believes to eternal paradise with the Father?

In the Holy Scripture, we read these verses, studying the accounts of the apostle Paul’s missionary journeys, as he traveled from city-after-city, preaching the gospel.

Surrounded by a world filled with suffering, loss and grief, believers need to live out loud, walking through each day cognizant of those individuals the Lord places in our paths.  Maybe we question ‘WHY’ should we live out loud within the boundaries of our lives?  For this answer, we can pause to recall this truth:  We need to live each day (even today) as our last, because someday, it truly will be just that—our last.

I know, a bit morbid to contemplate; however, the Lord reigns in unlimited power and wisdom.  HE alone determined the specific time and place we were to exist.  God specifically chose us to live in the 21^st Century rather than the 16^th Century.  It was the Lord who placed us into our mother’s womb, choosing the specific ones who would become our earthly father and mother.  Furthermore, it was the God of the universe who numbered the days He allotted for us to walk the face of the earth, even before He allowed us to breathe our first breath.  Do not believe me but read the truth found within The Psalms 139.

• God has given us exactly what we need to shine for Him.
• The Lord has gifted each one of His redeemed ones to reflect His Light in this dark world.

Amazing right!

And even if that’s not mind-blowing enough, the apostle Paul was led by the Spirit as he recorded—

This is a great place to pause and listen to the lyrics sung in the melody “Dusty Bibles” by Josiah Queen.

We may not be perfect—yet, but we must not live complacently.  We must not walk consumed by our own lives but with our eyes wide-open.  We must see where God is at work within our days, and we must step into His work, joining Him exactly where His Holy Spirit leads.

So, it is with sadness that we see the devastating loss of life caused by the sudden flooding, and we should pray for those families who are enduring such grief.  We must share with the hurting how our Lord Jesus is the Healer and the Savior.  We may even ask:  “God, why do you allow such pain?”  It is not wrong to question, but we must also remember the wisdom and power of the LORD, for HE sees the tapestry of all lives, seeing that which we do not understand this side of heaven.  The prophet Isaiah proclaimed this for us to recall.  Rather than saying, “I’m sorry,” when we encounter one who has been devasted by the loss of a loved one, let us say:  “Our God is our strength.  He is the One from whom we draw our strength.”  Then, let us ask:  “May I tell you more about the Savior?  May I tell you how Jesus transforms, bringing us from death to life?”

Today, rather than envisioning death as loss, as the ‘bleeding’ story, let us see the loss of one’s earthly life as a beautiful blessing, envisioning where their earthly death leads—paradise.  This is only possible for the one who has been transformed as a redeemed child of God.

• Let us Live Out Loud the Boundaries of Our Habitation.
• Let us share with others how to come to know Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord. &
• Let us proclaim to those we meet:  JESUS IS NEAR TO YOU.  SEEK HIM & YOU WILL FIND HIM.