Lutheran Church of Mahomet, The Invitation Lent 2018 | Page 17

When I was 16 my youngest Brother, Duane, and his friend were both killed by a drunk
driver. It numbed me at first and then I felt like I was being stabbed in the heart.
However, three events surrounding that tragedy strengthened my faith.
At the friends funeral the pastor said, “People will say this is ‘God’s Will’. This is not
God’s will. God doesn’t kill little boys.” In a time when so many people were pushing the
blame on God, this was exactly what I needed to hear.
Then I received a sympathy card from a boy my age, who wrote “Keep your faith in God,
give him time to heal.” Receiving a card with that wisdom from a fellow teen helped
bolster my faith against the pain of that time.
Finally, on the day of the funeral as we entered the church, a deluge of rain poured
from the sky. To me, it felt like God was crying with us. The downtown was flooded, but
as pastor Erwin spoke, a stream of light beamed through the windows of the sanctuary
and with that light, a calmness. “The peace which surpasses all understanding” de-
scended like a blanket of comfort upon all of us, and later we were left asking each oth-
er “Did you feel that?”
I had, and from then on my faith was stronger, unshakeable, and I know that we all had
been touched by Jesus.