Passage Of The Day....

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

-Ecclesiastes 3:11-

The day that I arrived back to New York in June, my old college roommate and dear friend, Matt, suddenly died. At 48, he left a wife, 3 young children, a successful legal career and his death was the day before his parents 50th wedding anniversary. I heard that he died in the arms of a colleague since the firm, where he was a partner, was having an offsite celebration and he succumbed on the plane ride back.

One of the speakers at Matt's funeral said that untimely deaths like his causes one to question their faith as he did. It is difficult to see what God's plan is and why these types of disasters, if God sees and knows all, are allowed to happen. Philosopher Nietzsche offered that the reason that these horrors happen is because God is dead. What a hopeless outlook on life.

There are horrors in our world. We see so many examples of injustice, death, destruction, miserable and shortened lives. We could spend our days engulfed in fear or pity. But, I suppose that these things are the nature of life and we are tasked with making the best of the hand that we are dealt.

I take comfort in the passage from Ecclesiastes above. We all endure pain, some probably more than others, but life's challenges are all to real for each and every one of us. But God, through his human embodiment in Jesus and the victory of his Resurrection over the tragedy of his own death, is telling us, that for believers, we can take comfort in our lives where there is both tragedy and pleasure. There is beauty in life and I think that we are compelled to enjoy our days. This is our task in life.

The pain of my friend's death to his living friends and relatives will dissipate over time. It will be replaced with memories of the fun times and pleasures that we shared together. Thinking of my friend Matt, and some of the antics that he was the center of, brings a smile to my face. Eventually, we will all join our relatives, friends and colleagues in eternity and over time, we will all be beautiful memories.