Hope

[jewelz]

Hi, I lost one of my 3 older sisters in November of 2012. It was so tragic! She lived in Minnesota and I didn't get to see her often, about once a year. She was being treated by some doctor for Asthma, but had just developed it, never had it before. It was getting worse, though she never had Asthma attacks, just couldn't breathe well. One day she called 911 and said she can't breathe and felt like she was dying, and she did. The paramedics couldn't help her breathe because of something in the way of her trachea. When she got to the hospital, they did a scope and found she had a Cystic Thyroid Tumor that was squeezing her trachea (windpipe) so she couldn't breathe. Unbelievable! I still can't believe she's gone, she was 47, and smart and full of life.

How I have coped:

The Bible's hope and the Truth. Many people feel that God takes people because He needed another angel. That teaching is not from the Bible. I know God did not take her, according to the following information:

1. We die because of Adam and Eve. We inherited their sin. Their only penalty for disobedience was death. They would be alive today if they didn't sin, and there wouldn't be any death, sickness or old age. (see Genesis 2:17 and Romans 5:12)
   
2. Death is an enemy (see I Corinthians 15:26), and if God takes our loved ones from us, that would make him selfish and mean, and would invalidate the scripture that says," God is Love" at I John 4:8.
   
3. Right now she is sleeping in death, which is what Jesus said that his friend Lazarus was doing even though he had been dead for 3 days, yet Jesus resurrected him. (see Ecclesiastes 9:5,6,10 and John chapter 11).
   
4. She has a hope of a resurrection and I hope to be there to welcome her back! This will take place on this same Earth after the Great Tribulation and Armageddon. At that time this Earth will be transformed into a lovely Paradise like God made the Garden of Eden, and all our dead loved ones who are sleeping in death will come back from the grave to a chance at life forever on this earth without death, sickness, old age, crime, war, wicked people, etc. This is the hope I have and I hope this gave you hope too for your loved ones that you have lost to death! (see Psalms 37:9,10,11,29 and Revelation 21:4 and John 5:28,29)