Mom, pregnant with Azaiah, and his big brother and big sisters
As I stripped the clothes of my son’s body to see if there were any signs of life, my eyes connected with both of my oldest daughters, ages 7 and 9. They were kneeling on the ground, screaming and crying out with me. My twelve-year-old son had to take charge of the house, calling his father and directing the paramedics to our place. My youngest daughters watched fearfully.
This moment changed the fabric of who they are. They watched their brother die. I hate that. I despise that moment.
I hate it because death hurts. Death scars us. Death mutilates us. Death is a curse. It is a curse that we suffer because we, as mankind, chose evil over the goodness of a holy God. I hate that.
So what do I do for my kids? In this season of our lives we have cried with them, prayed with them, held them. We have encouraged them to share memories, write in journals, paint pictures or yell and scream. Whatever they need to do. Our four year-old has a bag of notes that she writes to Azaiah throughout the day. Our seven year-old daughter wrote him a song.
We may have been stung by the consequences evil, but evil is not undefeated. The truth is evil can be conquered. It will be conquered by doing good.
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. Romans 12:21
And there God placed us. Asking us to do something good. We will heal, not by blaming God, not by suffocating in our walls of sorrow or by numbing our grief. We will overcome by immersing ourselves in the pain of death and serving other children who have also lost a brother or sister. We will reach out our hearts to these children and send care packages. I like to call them love in box.
Our nine year-old daughter had the name HE LIVES placed on her heart. Yes, Jesus lives. The one who conquered death himself. And so the ministry, He Lives for Kids, was born.
He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. Matthew 28:6
When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. Romans 6:10
Go right now and check our new Facebook page He Lives For Kids!
