Before Their Time…..

When tragedy happens and someone loses their life, we as human beings always question “why?” Our hearts cannot fathom the loss, so we question God. Some eventually turn away from God out of bitterness. They “feel” a certain way and their only form of solace is to blame God. We all have done this. God is the Ultimate Scapegoat for human suffering and loss. It’s easy to go down that path because it takes less effort. However, if you are one of those blessed with the ability to be honest with yourself (also at times a curse atleast from a human perspective) you stop the blame game. You don’t allow yourself to blame God for taking a loved one. Deep down inside our souls, lies the ability to accept loss. And the only reason it’s possible (eventually) is because we know God loves us. Which brings us to the point of today’s scripture: the reason some die “before their time” (as they common phrase goes) is because God is protecting them from future evil. For some this is still hard to swallow because we still question God. Why didn’t He just stop the evil? Why didn’t He just.......? How could He ......? God is God. His ways are above our ways. His thoughts are above our thoughts. We can question His motives all we want to, but God doesn’t have to do what we always want Him to do. It’s not what the Christian Faith is all about. He’s not a genie in a bottle or a doting grandpa. What I’m about to say may see off to some, but I realized this a long time ago and have held it as sacred in my heart ever since. When people die, destined for Heaven, they get to be with God. When their time is up, “cut short” or “before their time” as some might say, they get to experience God sooner than we do. They get to have His arms wrapped around them, and hear the most important words possible, “well done, good and faithful one”, and “I love you, welcome home”. When we arrive in Heaven their will be no more tears, no pain, and no more suffering. Our bodies will be perfected, the best they ever were or will be. We will be reunited with loved ones, and never again be tempted by sin. It will be better than the Utopia that many think is possible here on earth. Some still may think, “how can God take them from me”? God is sovereign, He knows the beginning from the end. He’s like a judge in a courtroom. When all the facts are presented, He knows everything. He’s examined everything. He’s got video evidence of everyone’s “thought life”. He knows every relevant detail of every relevant and irrelevant fact that happened. He has a perfect understanding of the case, so we He rules and gives a verdict, it’s 100% accurate, just, and appropriate. Nothing happens outside of His knowledge, so that’s means there are no mistakes made by God. The Bible says “not even one sparrow falls to the ground” without His awareness. So when we think about tragedies happening to people, “cutting their life short”, it’s not the same way God sees it. He is sparing the person from more future suffering and pain. He’s rescuing them from future evil. This may not always be the case or some, but it most certainly has this concept woven into it. Knowing this certainly brings me comfort, especially when I think of the 63 million aborted babies that have entered into His presence since 1973 (just in America alone). God knows what He’s doing. We just have to trust Him and take Him at His word. Even when things seem tragic to us, and we find ourselves question His reasons, giving into our uncontrollable emotions, He is still there, still sovereign, and still granting peace to troubled souls.

1 Good people pass away; the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come. 2 For those who follow godly paths will rest in peace when they die. Isaiah 57:1-2