Someday...

Some people say "but for the grace of God, it could have been I." I can't totally go with that thought. Why? I don't believe that God would choose to take a loved one from one family and protect a loved one from another family because he is selectively passing out grace. I don't have the answer, but it has to be something more than "but for the grace of God." I believe that God's grace encompasses all. When tragedy hits and pain floods through our souls, God's grace is the only thing that moves us forward. Today, however, I am acutely aware of the strangeness of fate. I do believe God can save people from dying, but I have to admit that understanding all about how life and death works...who gets to stay and who doesn't...gets a bit fuzzy for me.

Why am I even writing about this? Well...Sunday, my son who is 43 years old was playing on the dunes in the desert east of San Diego when the off road vehicle flipped. Marty was injured when the roll bar hit his head and shoulder as it overturned. Marty immediately realized he had a concussion. He really didn't know the way back to his camp. He told his daughter that he needed to sit for a few minutes. Soon they were on their way back to camp. He took a hard hit. Even a few hours later, he couldn't remember the details of the accident. Like Natasha, he refused to go to the doctor.

On Monday and less than 24 hours later, Natasha Richardson fell on a beginning ski slope. Her initital symptoms seemed less severe than Marty's symptoms. Yet, today she is gone and he is healing. I remember my dad talking about a scripture in the bible which tells us two men shall be on a rooftop and one shall be taken and one shall be left. He was discussing what he called the end of time. We see "one being taken and one left" in our lives today. One person will survive a major crash and several will die. A shooting leaves some dead others injured.

I am so thankful my son's life was spared from death as a result of an injury that certainly could easily have caused his death. I have thanked God for his life this week. The loss of Natasha from what appeared to be a minor fall on a ski slope should make all of us even more aware that in a second, a loved one can be gone. But Why?

There is so much we won't understand until we get to the other side. I always have loved the old gospel song "We will understand it better by and by...by and by when the morning comes." The loss of babies.....the burdens some people must carry throughout life...and so many mysteries will always be just that until we meet our Savior. It's all about faith. If we knew and had total understanding, it wouldn't require faith. In the meantime, thank you God for our blessings and someday I will understand it better.