He Only Takes The Best

"God is our refuge and strength, 
   an ever-present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
   and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, 

 though its waters roar and foam
   and the mountains quake with their surging. 

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
   the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
   God will help her at break of day." -Psalm 46:1-5

In the past two weeks, my Uncle Kenny lost his battle with liver cancer and passed away last Tuesday.  My dear friend Natalie's mom passed away this afternoon.  It has been a hard two weeks all around.

It has got me thinking so much lately about life and death.  How quickly our loved ones are gone and how much we take for granted.  My heart aches for Natalie as I have also lost a parent.  It is hard and my heart goes out to her.  My heart also goes out to my cousins who now have to deal with their dad's absence and the void that is left there. 

My prayers and my thoughts are with all of you tonight who have experienced loss at any level.  You are not alone.  Others mourn and grieve with you.  God is embracing you in strong arms to bring you comfort and peace.  His heart aches with you and He cries for you.  He feels this all as deeply as you do and He wants you to know tonight that He knows and He understands.  

Will you let Him in?

I received this poem in an e-mail on the anniversary of my mom's passing and thought I would share it with you.  God bless you tonight and be comforted by the love that can come only from the One who loves you best.

"He Only Takes The Best"

God watched you as you suffered, and knew you had your share.
He gently closed your weary eyes and took you in His care.

Your memory is our keepsake, with that we will never part.
God has you in His keeping, we have you in our hearts.

Nothing could be more beautiful than the memories we have of you.
To us you were someone special. God must have thought so too.

All our lives we shall miss you, as the years come and go,
but in our hearts you will live forever.  Because we love you so.

God saw you were getting tired, and a cure was not to be.
So He put His arms around you and whispered "Come with Me".

With tearful eyes we watched you suffer and fade away.
Although we loved you dearly, you were not meant to stay.

A golden heart stopped beating, hard- working hands to rest.
God broke our hearts to prove to us, He only takes the best!