I sit here and blog this morning, but just 24 hours ago I was a pallbearer, carrying a casket with five other grieving men through a snowy graveyard to lay my sweet sister-in-law, Tiny Walters to rest. She was beloved woman who was full of character. She was a wonderful wife, a loving mother of two beautiful daughters, and a Christian who was very active in her local Church. Tiny left this world after a 22 month battle with leukemia, and died at the young age of 48, which is way to young in my opinion.
For the past 2 years, me and my wife, along with so many other family members, have prayed for Tiny to be healed from this dreadful disease. We would see hope time and time again, but then get reports that would make us fear the worst. We anointed her with oil and prayed over her as described in James Chapter 5. People have stood in for her at the alter and prayed for healing on her behalf. Overall, there have been many tears and prayers lifted up unto God. The end result though was that we had a funeral for her, and we are now left with so many questions.
Some have asked me for the answers, and I've never had a good, quick, answer to give them. Some may be blaming themselves for not praying enough, or for having a lack of faith. Some might be blaming others for having a lack of faith. Some are possibly blaming God, and some are defending God and insisting that the devil did this. Some of us understand in the theological sense why sometimes good, Christian, people will die at a young age, but still cannot fully understand this particular tragedy because it hits so close to home. This is where I'm at currently, and I know a few others that are with me here.
My sister-in-law had a beautiful funeral service, and her pastor was very comforting as he described Heaven, and how there was no more suffering there. We now know that Tiny suffers no more from the ravages of leukemia, or from man's attempts to treat her with Chemotherapy and drugs.
Tiny's pastor, a cancer survivor himself, explained how she was now resting in Heaven, and is in perfect health and happiness, and that she is also waiting there for us. These were much needed words of comfort, as there are so many people hurting right now, and I know Tiny would have been pleased to see the huge turn out of people who attended. The funeral service provides a much needed closure for the family. We know Tiny is now reunited with her family (that were in Christ) that have gone on before her.
All of this is helpful to the family that she has left behind, but still there are questions left behind as well. I can explain according to the bible in the general sense why things like this happen, and why there is suffering, sickness, and death. However, I cannot explain why Tiny has been taken from us. I've prayed with families who lost loved ones while volunteering as a hospital chaplain, but I've never had that answer for them - why their loved one? The best thing I can tell them is that God will one day give them the understanding.
Although some of it still eludes my understanding, but this is what I currently understand about God and how He works with human suffering, sickness, and death. I'll attempt to do this by answering some questions based on what I know of the bible. Question #1... Does God permit human suffering, sickness, and death?
Some would be quick to answer this and tell us that God does not cause these tragedies. They would tell you that it is the devil that orchestrates earthquakes, hurricanes, famine, and human suffering, sickness, and death. I've heard preachers say that God does not have cancer, so He cannot give anyone cancer. I've heard other preachers talk about how "God will put a tumor on you the size of a softball." I've heard so much arguing over whether it is God or Satan that does these things. This isn't the question that I'm answering though. The question is... Does God permit human suffering, sickness, and death? If we read the book of Job we do see that it is Satan that brought so much calamity on Job, but he also did so with God's permission.
Ephesians 1:11 says,
This may step on some people's theology, but God is sovereign. This means that He is in control of everything (good or bad) that happens. This also means that God allows people in this world to die at a young age whether they are a Christian or not. God is in control of ALL of this, because God is sovereign. This means also that God allowed my sister-in-law and other beloved family members to pass away. Everything that happens does so with God's permission. This is according to Ephesians 1:11 above where it clearly says that He "works all things according to the counsel of His will."
For the past 2 years, me and my wife, along with so many other family members, have prayed for Tiny to be healed from this dreadful disease. We would see hope time and time again, but then get reports that would make us fear the worst. We anointed her with oil and prayed over her as described in James Chapter 5. People have stood in for her at the alter and prayed for healing on her behalf. Overall, there have been many tears and prayers lifted up unto God. The end result though was that we had a funeral for her, and we are now left with so many questions.
Some have asked me for the answers, and I've never had a good, quick, answer to give them. Some may be blaming themselves for not praying enough, or for having a lack of faith. Some might be blaming others for having a lack of faith. Some are possibly blaming God, and some are defending God and insisting that the devil did this. Some of us understand in the theological sense why sometimes good, Christian, people will die at a young age, but still cannot fully understand this particular tragedy because it hits so close to home. This is where I'm at currently, and I know a few others that are with me here.
My sister-in-law had a beautiful funeral service, and her pastor was very comforting as he described Heaven, and how there was no more suffering there. We now know that Tiny suffers no more from the ravages of leukemia, or from man's attempts to treat her with Chemotherapy and drugs.
Tiny's pastor, a cancer survivor himself, explained how she was now resting in Heaven, and is in perfect health and happiness, and that she is also waiting there for us. These were much needed words of comfort, as there are so many people hurting right now, and I know Tiny would have been pleased to see the huge turn out of people who attended. The funeral service provides a much needed closure for the family. We know Tiny is now reunited with her family (that were in Christ) that have gone on before her.
All of this is helpful to the family that she has left behind, but still there are questions left behind as well. I can explain according to the bible in the general sense why things like this happen, and why there is suffering, sickness, and death. However, I cannot explain why Tiny has been taken from us. I've prayed with families who lost loved ones while volunteering as a hospital chaplain, but I've never had that answer for them - why their loved one? The best thing I can tell them is that God will one day give them the understanding.
Although some of it still eludes my understanding, but this is what I currently understand about God and how He works with human suffering, sickness, and death. I'll attempt to do this by answering some questions based on what I know of the bible. Question #1... Does God permit human suffering, sickness, and death?
Some would be quick to answer this and tell us that God does not cause these tragedies. They would tell you that it is the devil that orchestrates earthquakes, hurricanes, famine, and human suffering, sickness, and death. I've heard preachers say that God does not have cancer, so He cannot give anyone cancer. I've heard other preachers talk about how "God will put a tumor on you the size of a softball." I've heard so much arguing over whether it is God or Satan that does these things. This isn't the question that I'm answering though. The question is... Does God permit human suffering, sickness, and death? If we read the book of Job we do see that it is Satan that brought so much calamity on Job, but he also did so with God's permission.
Ephesians 1:11 says,
In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
This may step on some people's theology, but God is sovereign. This means that He is in control of everything (good or bad) that happens. This also means that God allows people in this world to die at a young age whether they are a Christian or not. God is in control of ALL of this, because God is sovereign. This means also that God allowed my sister-in-law and other beloved family members to pass away. Everything that happens does so with God's permission. This is according to Ephesians 1:11 above where it clearly says that He "works all things according to the counsel of His will."
When facing the tragedies of life it leaves us with a few choices to make doesn't it?
Choice #1 - In our grief, we could choose to become angry at God and rebel against Him. Choice #2 - We could choose to not believe in His existence at all.
Choice #3 - We could blame ourselves or others.
Choice #4 - We could admit we don't understand all of God's ways, but we will still trust Him.
When faced with the tragedy of battling Leukemia, my sister-in-law Tiny chose #4, and although she wasn't able to always trace God's hand working in her life, she trusted His heart. Even though there is a lot about God we may not know, He has revealed to us a lot about Himself in His word, the Holy Bible. What a privilege it is to hold such a book as this in our hands, and yet how often do we not appreciate what it truly is? Through reading the pages of the bible we can actually answer many of life's questions about tragedy and human suffering. For instance, Does God permit these things to happen? - Like Ephesians 1:11 above answers.
God allows tragedy in this life just as He allows people to sin. Although God does not want us to sin, but He leaves it up to us, and allows us to do it. God allows us to turn against Him and sin, and God allows us to choose to follow Him. God has permitted that we have the freedom to choose whether we will worship Him or not.
Genesis 1:26 says,
Romans 5:12 says,
God permits people to die (some even at a young age) because of the sin that is in the world. As we see in Romans 5:12, sin entered the world, and with it death. Death is then spread onto everyone (all men), and this is because all have sinned. The question is then... Should we hate sin, or should we hate death? Answer, we should hate both!
Of course we should hate sin, for it is sin that has brought death into this world, and we do hate death. I hate that so many of my loved ones have died, just as all of us do. Some of them were so young. Since sickness, acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and other tragedies all linked by a common denominator we know as death, and that all of this is a result of sin. In other words, the side effects of sin is death.
It only is common logic that when we take a drug, that we hate it's harmful side effects. This is usually done with the knowledge that we are at least taking a medicine that may benefit us in some way. With sin however, we only experience a temporary pleasure, that is followed by the side effect of death. So sin is not a medicine at all, but it is a poison. People die because of sin, and we all have sinned, so we all die. The fact that people die young in this world is because of the sin that is in the world according to the bible. Does God have a plan in the end?
In Revelation Chapter 20, we read about God's final judgment of Satan, and him being cast into "the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Following this is the "Great white Throne Judgment." During this judgment all of the people whose name isn't found in the Lamb's Book of Life are also cast into the lake of fire. This is called the "Second Death." As we read further we see that finally the last thing to be thrown into the lake of fire is death. This is also mentioned in 1st Corinthians 15:26, where it says, "And the last enemy to be destroyed is death."
That's right, Death, just like Sin, and just like Satan - are all our enemies! God will destroy them all in His final judgment over the earth, but what is awesome is that while all of this is happening, my sister-in-law Tiny, my wife Ann, myself, and many other people I love will be in Heaven together. This is because God also has a plan for His children.
God, who gave us the ability to choose, also gave us the choice of not being condemned to this judgment. He took the most drastic measure of sending His only Son Jesus to make this choice possible for us. Where sin separated us from God, the death of Jesus and His resurrection from the dead defeated our enemy - death! This means that while we will die physically in the first death, we do not have to face the second death! In giving Himself for us, Jesus took care of both sin and it's side effect of death! Romans 4:25 tells us that He "was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification"
When we die now and are in Christ, we are in the presence of our Lord, and He made us this promise among many others saying, "I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." (John 14:3)
Because of what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross, the bible says that, “He that has the Son has life.” We can receive Jesus Christ, as our Savior by faith, and trust in Jesus and His death as the payment for our sins. John 1:12 says, "But to all who have received him--those who believe in his name--he has given the right to become God's children."
In this life we will suffer. Nobody is immune to this, for Jesus Himself even suffered while on this earth as a man. Sin has entered this world and this is why. God has allowed this world to operate as it does, and has allowed us the opportunity to choose life in spite of it all. We are not going to be in this cursed place forever, but we are just passing through it. We are spirit beings living a temporary human experience, and our choices directly effect our eternity.
Revelation 21:4 promises us,
My sister-in-law Tiny suffered through many trials in this world as we all do. Her pastor during the funeral stated that through it all, her faith in Christ did not waver. I, and many others noticed this too about her. Tiny put her trust in Jesus as her Savior and to the end she stood firm in Him. She now experiences the joy of Heaven in the presence of Jesus, and her family before her.
This verse is for her.
God allows tragedy in this life just as He allows people to sin. Although God does not want us to sin, but He leaves it up to us, and allows us to do it. God allows us to turn against Him and sin, and God allows us to choose to follow Him. God has permitted that we have the freedom to choose whether we will worship Him or not.
Genesis 1:26 says,
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”It is God's will that man has control to make our own choices in life. We are created in God's image and we have authority in the earth. It is God however that has authority over the universe and everything in it - including us. With this control we have been given comes responsibility. There will also be consequences that we face as a result of our choices in life. Since God is in control of everything, He has also allowed this world to exist as we know it and for us to be in control of how we live in it.
Romans 5:12 says,
Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—
God permits people to die (some even at a young age) because of the sin that is in the world. As we see in Romans 5:12, sin entered the world, and with it death. Death is then spread onto everyone (all men), and this is because all have sinned. The question is then... Should we hate sin, or should we hate death? Answer, we should hate both!
Of course we should hate sin, for it is sin that has brought death into this world, and we do hate death. I hate that so many of my loved ones have died, just as all of us do. Some of them were so young. Since sickness, acts of terrorism, natural disasters, and other tragedies all linked by a common denominator we know as death, and that all of this is a result of sin. In other words, the side effects of sin is death.
It only is common logic that when we take a drug, that we hate it's harmful side effects. This is usually done with the knowledge that we are at least taking a medicine that may benefit us in some way. With sin however, we only experience a temporary pleasure, that is followed by the side effect of death. So sin is not a medicine at all, but it is a poison. People die because of sin, and we all have sinned, so we all die. The fact that people die young in this world is because of the sin that is in the world according to the bible. Does God have a plan in the end?
In Revelation Chapter 20, we read about God's final judgment of Satan, and him being cast into "the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Following this is the "Great white Throne Judgment." During this judgment all of the people whose name isn't found in the Lamb's Book of Life are also cast into the lake of fire. This is called the "Second Death." As we read further we see that finally the last thing to be thrown into the lake of fire is death. This is also mentioned in 1st Corinthians 15:26, where it says, "And the last enemy to be destroyed is death."
That's right, Death, just like Sin, and just like Satan - are all our enemies! God will destroy them all in His final judgment over the earth, but what is awesome is that while all of this is happening, my sister-in-law Tiny, my wife Ann, myself, and many other people I love will be in Heaven together. This is because God also has a plan for His children.
God, who gave us the ability to choose, also gave us the choice of not being condemned to this judgment. He took the most drastic measure of sending His only Son Jesus to make this choice possible for us. Where sin separated us from God, the death of Jesus and His resurrection from the dead defeated our enemy - death! This means that while we will die physically in the first death, we do not have to face the second death! In giving Himself for us, Jesus took care of both sin and it's side effect of death! Romans 4:25 tells us that He "was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification"
When we die now and are in Christ, we are in the presence of our Lord, and He made us this promise among many others saying, "I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." (John 14:3)
Because of what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross, the bible says that, “He that has the Son has life.” We can receive Jesus Christ, as our Savior by faith, and trust in Jesus and His death as the payment for our sins. John 1:12 says, "But to all who have received him--those who believe in his name--he has given the right to become God's children."
In this life we will suffer. Nobody is immune to this, for Jesus Himself even suffered while on this earth as a man. Sin has entered this world and this is why. God has allowed this world to operate as it does, and has allowed us the opportunity to choose life in spite of it all. We are not going to be in this cursed place forever, but we are just passing through it. We are spirit beings living a temporary human experience, and our choices directly effect our eternity.
Revelation 21:4 promises us,
"He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
My sister-in-law Tiny suffered through many trials in this world as we all do. Her pastor during the funeral stated that through it all, her faith in Christ did not waver. I, and many others noticed this too about her. Tiny put her trust in Jesus as her Savior and to the end she stood firm in Him. She now experiences the joy of Heaven in the presence of Jesus, and her family before her.
This verse is for her.
Blessed is the man (or woman) who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. - James 1:12
Dedicated to Addie B. Walters (Tiny)
May 27, 1964 - Feb 13, 2013
