Yesterday afternoon we had a staff member go missing in the lake when his life jacket slipped off him. He didn't know how to swim. The search started to look for Anthony and what was a search turned into a sweep of the lake in the later afternoon. It's been a tough 24+ hours for the staff here at CAMP-of-the-WOODS. Although I don't remember ever officially meeting Anthony and shaking hands with him, I know he was close to a lot of people here and we all feel the weight of losing our brother.
It's hard to know what to think, or how to proceed from here. How do we carry on when it feels like the world has come to a stop? How do we keep ourselves from asking all the questions burning in our hearts, that we are dying to cry out. God, where are you in all of this? I believe you're in control, and that's why I don't understand how you could let something like this happen to someone so young, why, God?
I don't claim to know the answer to all or any of these questions. But what I do know is this:
God is good. And it's OK to ask 'why?' as long as we remember that God is good, and move onto the question, 'God, what's Your purpose in all of this?'
I've also been thinking about the mindset, 'live like we are dying.' Actually, more than anything I've been questioning this mindset. I think I understand the general concept behind it, but I really want to challenge the thought process. I'm not arguing against making the most of every second we have here on earth, but I want to suggest possibly a more hopeful view. Maybe something like, 'live as if God's given you a purpose for tomorrow.' I truly believe we can get so wrapped up in living in the here and now, we can forget to dream big dreams for tomorrow. If we live as though we are going to die today, we sometimes forget to think long term and have hopes and dreams for the future. Dream big. Dream as if there will be a tomorrow. And if there turns out to be a tomorrow, He may change your plans for the day anyway, but at least you dreamt. At least you can say you lived yesterday as though you had a purpose today. God's given you today as a blessing; a chance to make dreams become a reality. And every 'tomorrow' has the possibility to become a 'today.' Make it count.
God is in control. If we are living as though He's given us a purpose tomorrow, if it's our time to be with Him today, don't you think He already has that all figured out? Having dreams about tomorrow isn't going to mean you miss out on living today. There's no reason to be overly concerned about what day we are going to be brought back to be with Him.
It's important to remember that we as Christians need to handle and approach these situations differently because of the truth of God's Word and His promises. We proceed with hope because He has given it to us. We are a people of hope.
We are meant to mourn. But we aren't meant to get stuck in that stage. We should spend more time celebrating life, than mourning death. Today in morning chapel, the speaker said something that is so true. 'Death is dead.'
Amen.
We know Anthony is back home. And from the stories I've heard about Anthony, He was truly living with a purpose. Seeking God everyday, and growing in faith.
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