My heart breaks for Anicette's Mom and I will be praying that Anicette's brother or sister will be born healthy and grow as she should! My prayers are with you, too! Rejoicing for Anicette as she is now with Jesus and not in pain! Miss you!
Love,
Denise
Ali, I'm so sorry! If you see her mama again give a HUGE hug from me and tell her I am praying hard for her! And I'm praying for all of you! I have tears streaming down my cheeks as I write...Love you all and all of you are in my prayers!
how will I tell them tomorrow morning, those who prayed so faithfully, so daily? what do I tell them about death and suffering? what do I tell them when there are no answers for their certain questions? I can only prepare myself in prayer tonight, entrusting my deep sorrow to Him who died that she might be alive today, in heaven, at His side. I thought my relationship with you through your blog was for the joining of our prayers with your ministering. tonight I believe, no, I know that it is for more too, for the opening of our eyes to know Him more through the sufferings wherewith He has promised He Himself is acquainted. sweet Anicette...the eyes that captured our hearts and have turned the self-centered prayers of my children into those of international prayer warriors. tonight and tomorrow and for every day thereafter we will replace our prayers for Ani with those for Zenabou and Ani's new sibling. wishing I could sob together with you as we whisper His promises to each other...we love you, Ali. we love you.
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. rom 5:1-5
Therefore, we hope, through the tears knowing that Jesus has gone ahead, is preparing a home, where there will be no more tears, is preparing us. I pray for you, for the team, for Zenabou, for the baby. May God heal your wounded hearts, give you grace for today.
In Christ,
clara
Praying for you. Thinking of loss it reminds of a quote from one of my favorite book about the death that's inevitable for all of us:
“We’re all dying… Life is not what we’re trying to hold to… It was never about keeping her, even though it hurts to loose her. We’re praying to release her… whenever it’s God will that she go. We don’t waste our prayers on salvaging life here—we’re asking that God call you to the life that’s eternal. And that’s what God has given… Life that won’t end. She’s almost made it through all the pain and arrived the beginning. God has answered every prayer.”
Dana’s Valley by Janette Oke & Laurel Oke Logan
As I was praying for you and Zenabou, I was reminded of Dr. Jennifer Myhre's blog. She was working in Uganda during the most recent Ebola outbreak, and I found her thoughts comforting and courageous.
Here's my favorite entitled, "God in a Box"
"Reading Job this morning, and that’s what the book is about. Job’s friends try to put God in a box. If you do A, God will reward you with B. It is only in grief, tragedy, lament that real worship begins, not grasping God for His gifts but clinging to reality in the midst of confusion. God does not answer with formulas but with poetry, not with explanations but with presence. Today the churches will be praying and fasting for the end of the epidemic. We ask for that. But we don’t pretend that if there is enough outcry, then surely God will act the way we want. No, we pray to say that we have not given up, that we still seek God’s presence in the face of loss."
So sorry to hear about Anicette losing her battle. I ache for her mother who knows to well the club from hell for parents who have lost children. I'd like to believe that my two lost kids were there to take Ani's hand and welcome her to a better place where love rules the day and there is no pain.
This is so sad to hear Ali. I remember seeing her while I was on the ship. It must be so hard for the nurses, especially those who saw her last year. My prayers are with you guys.
This post was really comforting to me. If a medical ship couldn't stop the passage of death to Life in this baby then who am I? God has their little lives in His hands and sometimes He lets us save their lives and sometimes He chooses to take them home but ALL the time He is in control.
Your words are beautiful Ali! Such a gift you have of telling the stories so many NEED to hear. Thank you for sharing my friend. Hugs and kisses to you and the crew left to pick up the pieces to keep moving on.