There is no heavier subject, and there is no even that is more unwelcome, but it remains a reality.  I received word today that my first cousin’s wife died suddenly and unexpected this morning at the age of 52.  It reminds how fragile, and how brief, this life is.

I heard about a man and his son riding down the road in the car and a wasp stung the dad on the arm, and then he flew over on the windshield close to the young boy.  The boy, knowing that it had stung his dad, became panic-stricken that it was going to sting him, also.  The dad told him not to worry, that when the wasp stung him, it left its stinger and could no longer do any damage.  That reminds me of the verse in 1 Corinthians 15 that says, “O grave, where is your victory, O death, where is your sting?”  The answer in that passage is that when Jesus died and rose again, He took the sting out of death, and the victory out of the grave.

The physical death of a loved one causes great pain, but the silver lining in the cloud is that the believer continues to live in a wonderful place called heaven.