We all know that death is part of life. As a friend put it, “We all all one breath away from death from the moment of our birth.” Sometimes death comes as welcome relief when a person is old and ailing. My friend’s elderly mother, who lived to nearly 100, would lament that she thought God had forgotten her. But death is an enemy when it comes unexpectedly to one young and vibrant. That was our experience this week.
I was shocked last Sunday night when I got an email from a young woman in our congregation saying that a young member of our congregation had died. I asked how she knew, she read it on FaceBook. It was dreadful news.
Jessica was an amazing young woman – 19 years old – but mature beyond her years. I met her about five years ago when she started coming to our church with her dad. She got involved in some of the youth activities and took confirmation class and was confirmed in 2010. She had a ready smile, a cloud of golden curls framed her face, and her petite frame was a gymnast and dancer’s dream, both were activities Jessica excelled at.
At her funeral service on Thursday her parents looked shocked and bewildered that they were sitting in their daughter’s funeral service. Her sister did her best to maintain the kind of grace that Jessica would have shown. Jessica’s friend gave a tribute and spoke in a manner that I have never heard from a friend at a service. Her tribute was eloquent, touching, and ended with a testimony to her faith in God, a faith that she and Jessica shared. It was brilliant and seemed even more so coming from one so young – such maturity from so few years.
In Matthew’s gospel he has Jesus speak of the end of the age coming “like a thief in the night”. Matthew writes it as a cautionary tale encouraging the believers to always be ready to ‘meet their maker’. But this week it felt very much like death was an enemy that broke in and violated the life we knew. At times like this I am at a loss for words. How to say anything of comfort to a family experiencing such a tragic grief. I can only hope that by standing with them and sharing their pain they felt some comfort. And the reminder to all of us that God walks with us in the darkest valleys will bring strength.
