...until we meet...

Ever since the "Teach Them Diligently" convention, our home has been a little out of sorts.  Not because of the convention- because of my new little sister.

A few days after we arrived home from the convention, we discovered that my mother was expecting.  This new little baby would now be our tenth!  Unfortunately, all in the same three days we also discovered that our precious baby brother or sister had passed into eternal glory.

Why?   

One asks.  

Why did she have to die?  Didn't God know that we already loved her, already we desired to hold her, dress her, feed her, embrace her?  Didn't He realize that we want another baby?

Of course He did- and still does.

I received an email from Lamplighter Moments a day or so ago that featured this verse,

"All Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he alone of Jeroboam’s family will come to the grave, because in him something good was found toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam."

-1 Kings 14:13

(emphasis added)

The context of this verse is that Jeroboam's little son, Abijah, is dying.  Upon Jeroboam sending his wife to inquire of the prophet Ahijah this, among other things, was what he told her.

It was strange to receive this email after all that our family has been going through over the past couple of weeks.  

Perhaps God wished me to see it to assure me that my baby sister is in heaven with Him, not because she did anything wrong, not because we did anything wrong, but because He loved her, and wanted to bring her home to Himself.  

You may ask yourself, if He can so easily take her away- so quickly- why would He bother allowing her to be conceived in the first place?  Ah, my friend.  You are considering the child's worth to be placed on their physical body and appearance in this world.  But actually the worth of my sister lies in her soul.  Another child of God crying at His throne, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD God Almighty!"  No matter what her physical worth was on this earth- she is another voice to sing the praises of the Creator in heaven.   She is another knee, bowing before the throne.  She has another crown, laying it down before Jesus, worshiping at His feet.

Many of us have such brothers and sisters that have been taken away sooner than we expect.  Take heart, my dear friend, that until we meet them in heaven, we must have faith and peace in the fact that the Lord loves them more than we do- just as He loves us more than anyone else can.

Won't it be wonderful someday to stand shoulder to shoulder with them praising God?  Bowing before His throne with my baby sister....  singing, "Holy, Holy, Holy..."