He Gives and Takes Away
August 18, 2023 by admin
Filed under Faith, Faith Articles
By Courtney Rogers
Recently, my family faced a very trying time. My grandfather passed away due to a heart attack, stroke, and other complications. Through his death, it has made our family stronger. We do not always understand why God does what He does or why He chooses to take things away from us. Unlike God, we cannot always see the bigger picture that He has planned for us. He has a purpose for every trial that He has strategically placed in our lives.
In John chapter eleven, there was a man named Lazarus who became very ill. People all over called upon Jesus to go and heal Lazarus before he passed away. When Jesus arrived to Lazarus’ house, he had already died. People were furious that Jesus did not come in time to heal him! Jesus came to the grave and told Lazarus to arise. Within moments, Lazarus was fully alive and walking! Jesus had raised him from the dead!
If Jesus had arrived at Lazarus’ house and healed him, it would have been a great miracle. Instead, Jesus let him die and raised him from the grave. People were able to see even more of his wondrous glory! Jesus taught a very valuable lesson that day. He taught that sometimes we need to just simply trust that God knows what He is doing. Even when situations seem to be extremely hard, we must have faith that everything is in God’s control.
Thankfully, my family takes much joy in knowing that my grandfather was a born again Christian. Knowing this, we fully understand that we will see him again in heaven with the Lord. My grandfather is no longer in pain here on earth, but he is in heaven with the Lord praising and giving glory to Him. Through this hard time it is our prayer that others can see Christ through this situation and everything can be for His glory. We may not understand why God has chosen this time to take my grandfather home, but I do know that He has a divine purpose for this.
Matthew 5:4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Dedicated to James Eugene “Gene” Meeks (Sept. 12, 1938 – May 31, 2008)
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