Grieving. I have far less experience than some with the process. For a woman of many words, my lips fall silent here in the midst of sympathy, sadness, and grief. Our dear friends have lost someone very special this week. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. I can't pretend to understand it all, but I can seek and trust Him all the same.
When God is our Holy Father, sovereignty, holiness, omniscience, and immutability do not terrify us; they leave us full of awe and gratitude. Sovereignty is only tyrrannical if it is unbounded by goodness; holiness is only terrifying if it is untempered by grace; omniscience is only taunting if it is unaccompanied by mercy; and immutability is only torturous if there is no guarantee of goodwill. That which God has joined together, let no man put asunder. Thanks be to God, we know with a surety that His grace and goodness and hope and His love underlie all of these attributes. How do we know? Follow the face of Christ to the cross, and you will see it."
--Ravi Zacharias, Cries of the Heart