Why Lori Part Two

My son, Neil, played football for Harding Academy in Searcy, Arkansas and one of his coaches was Jon Newby. Jon was and is a good man and is admired by those he helped coach, as well as many others. Jon's wife, Lori, recently died of cancer leaving children and husband broken hearted, hurting and lonely for her. Prayers were offered by the hundreds and even thousands almost all asking for release from the terrible grip of the cancer. People were asking for God's healing, but it was not to be and Lori passed away. Many were left shaking their heads and wondering, some quietly in their own minds; others out loud...Why? "Good God in heaven," they were asking, "why?"

To answer "Why Lori?" is not an easy thing to do. Nor is it easy to answer when it's your husband, wife, child or other loved one. What did they do that was different from everyone else so that they might be singled out? We look, examine, search, and rack our brains trying to understand and when all is said and done...no answer. We can't get a handle on what they might have done that caused such a thing to happen because their is nothing to get a handle on. Lori was not worse than any others. No. She was a lovely woman, caring and serving. And I'm sure your loved one(s) were too. The answer(s) are not really to be found in the individuals actions, so we have to look elsewhere.

Unfortunately, we are people of the earth. We have a difficult time keeping our eyes on heaven and the face of God. We look at things linearly rather than eternally. Not that we don't believe in God, but He's out there somewhere far away and we are here on earth where life is. I heard someone say, "We hear about pie in the sky in the sweet by and by, but we want it here on the ground while we're still around." We think "earthly". Yet when great suffering comes and death may soon follow we begin calling on God more and more and thoughts of eternity come easier, but when the moment has passed - perhaps with the passing of our loved one - faith ebbs and we are back on earth once again. To understand better we need to ask ourselves several questions, perhaps, but the greatest is "Why did God create us?"

Whatever the answer, Jim McGuiggan made the point, and I agree, "God has chosen not to be God without us..." We know this is true because here we are, created by the loving hands of God. And God chose to express His love in us. Because He is love and love must seek to express itself, He chose to express Himself in us. We were created to be loved ones of God. Ephesians chapter one tells us that we were predestined for adoption as His children. God wanted us in His family. This is why we were created. To be with God. To live with God. To be showered with the love of God. Jesus told us, "My Father's house has many rooms: if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me, that where I am you may be also." For people of Faith, it is clear that we are meant to be with God. Where ever heaven is and where ever we will spend eternity, God means to be there with us. So my conclusion is...God created us to be with Him. We were not meant to spend eternity here on earth without God.

Once we get a grasp on this we begin looking at life and death differently. Where ever God is there is great blessing, peace, no pain; no suffering; no death! Commercials about and sales of Ibuprofen ought to demonstrate our desire for at least two of the above. We want a pain-free, peaceful life. What are we willing to give to have such a thing? And God? God wants to be our Father and have us live with Him. True, He leaves the choice of being with Him up to us, but this is still His desire. (1 Timothy 2:3-4).

Conception starts the process of traveling to God in our individual lives. We're born, grow, age and mature; Then we begin to ebb, we decline and finally we die. There are times, as we have all experienced, when some of those steps are taken out of different people's lives. Some babies are born with defects or ailments that curtail the system and death comes early. When this happens, of course, questions arise. Yet when we remember the purpose for being here to begin with the question(s) don't rush into our head so quickly as they otherwise might. We recognize that they are completing their journey to God a bit earlier than they might have.

Of course, when it's a young mom with a loving family we still find it difficult to understand why God would allow such a thing. Yet faith also rises and trust grows that God knows what He is doing and it will all work out for the good.

David committed adultery with Bathsheba and killed her husband when Bathsheba was found to be with child. When the child was born and became ill, David prayed and fasted, asking for healing. It wasn't given and the child died. When that happened, David got up, bathed and asked for food. His court asked him what this meant. He told them the simple truth that God had chosen not to give the healing and the child could not come back to David. Yet. Yet, David was assured that he could go to the child. He would see him again because He was with God. And, in David's case, faith won the victory and overcame the world.