Heaven came near.... an unwanted good-bye

We had a very sad week. My dear sister, Aimee, unexpectedly passed away last week. Words cannot express our grief.



Memories of her even in this past year fill our minds:
- She met me at the airport w/ my other sister, Genevieve, when I flew back from Ukraine to be rediagonsed w/ cancer
- went with me to all those initial doctor appts.
- was the family hostess for the holidays of our northern family
- met Josh in Sacramento on his field trip
- flew down for Josh and Mark's birthdays
- came down to visit me w/ Genevieve
- gathered the birthday and Christmas lists from Ben and Josh and bought everything on the lists for them!
- came down w/ Gen and Mom to celebrate my birthday
- called on the exact date of our birthdays and sang "Happy Birthday" to us
- always kept in touch thru e-mails and phone calls
The list goes on. She leaves a big hole for many.

If you look at my last blog entry, she is the one who left a comment. Now she is in that place - Heaven - enjoying our Lord and Savior, for it was thru her that I became a Christian...
"...and thus we shall always be with the Lord." 1 Thess 4:17
"...depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better." Phil 1:23

Smoke - Filled Vision

We woke this morning to a smoke filled sky and ashes on the ground.
...9:00am

...ashes

We are still quite a distance from the roaring wildfires that have scorched So. California over the weekend. It has been the worst fires since 1961. Around 1,000 homes have been destroyed, 20,000 acres scorched and tens of thousands evacuated and it is still roaring. What words come to mind watching the newscasts?... loss... compassion... and all the emotions that go with that... a huge loss for many.

I have been so blessed by updates from a dear man with SEND International who has Lou Gehrig's disease. He writes: "...outdoor activities such as camping, fishing, canoeing, boating, jet skiing, bicycling, motor cycling, etc, etc. Well…almost all of these activities and joys have come to a halt. So I have been divesting myself of ‘my toys’... A keen awareness of Matt 6:19-21 has been growing in my heart,
"Stop storing up treasures for yourselves on earth,... Instead, store up treasures for yourselves in heaven,..."
With my mortality staring me in the face daily, I have been thinking a lot more about life beyond this arena in which we are now living. What is beyond? What is Heaven like? ...Here are a few gems from Alcorn's book 'Heaven': [460]
“If we build our lives on the redemptive work of Christ, we should all be optimists. Why? Because even our most painful experience in life is but a temporary setback. Our pain and suffering may or may not be relieved, but they will certainly be relieved in the next.”
... thanks for clearing the smoke, Don!